Living Under Void Nights
by AedricDaedra
Summary: The year is 4E 98. For the next two years, Nirn's two moons will suddenly vanish from the night sky, but what really happened? See Elsweyr as it was during the crisis, as a group of Khajiit teenagers of all forms leave the safety of their homes as chaos ensues the land to uncover the truth behind the disappearance of the moons, and if possible - how to bring them back.
1. Prologue: A Mother's Thoughts

_And all Fadomai's children left except Azurah. And Fadomai said, "To you, my favored daughter, Fadomai leaves her greatest gift. To you Fadomai leaves her secrets." And Fadomai told her favored daughter three things._

 _And Fadomai said, "When Nirni is filled with her children, take one of them and change them. Make the fastest, cleverest, most beautiful people, and call them Khajiit._

 _And Fadomai said, "The Khajiit must be the best climbers, for if Masser_ _and Secunda fail, they must climb Khenarthi's breath to set the moons back in their courses."_

 _And Fadomai said, "The Khajiit must be the best deceivers, for they must always hide their nature from the children of Ahnurr."_

 _And Fadomai said, "The Khajiit must be the best survivors, for Nirni will be jealous, and she will make the sands harsh and the forests unforgiving, and the Khajiit will always be hungry and at war with Nirni."_

 _\- Words of Clan Mother Ahnissi to her favored daughter_

* * *

 **Prologue: A Mother's Thoughts**

The fresh, warm night air is thick and humid, as rain pours down from the heavens, drenching Nirni in endless waves of torrent. The sounds pattering on the roofs of every house beckons to be heard by its occupants, whose ears flick and twitch obligingly to its tune, as they wish naught to hear it. It is not uncommon for nights such as these to pass, for after all, is this not a rainforest? The wooden palaces and stone roads only serve to deceive a sense of urban stagnancy, but in truth this land and the people within it are as free and wild as the nature around us, in this most southern reaches of the homeland of my people, in the city of Torval, in Elsweyr, in the 98th year of the Fourth Era. Here it is that the Mane, Rid-Rawl'vah - the spiritual leader of our kind - lives and guides us, and we listen to his words, for he has yet to lead us astray.

A reminder to this one shows itself in the puddles donning the stone roads below her open window, a reflection of the graceful moonlight of a full Jone and Jode hanging beyond the clouds in the night sky. The phase of the Senche will soon be over, and for the shortest time, the rare occurrence of the rise of the Third Moon will be upon us on the 17th of Last Seed, and a future Mane will be at its heels to follow, yet still inside the womb of a lucky soon-to-be mother somewhere, a child with a great destiny will be born.

But this one is already lucky, for she is the happy mother of her blessed daughter and the wife of the cat she is not sure she could ever live without. Tatanja could ask for nothing more, and still feel guilty for being given so much by the gods, for others are not so lucky. Too many. Ah, Khinashi...my daughter, so young, so innocent, but ever so eager to be like her father, to see the wide world with her own eyes. She does not know the harsh truths of the world around her, the cruelties that her fellow mortals that share this world can be capable of. She does not know the pain they can bring, to both the body and the heart. To her these horrors only exist inside the books she clings her claws so tightly to, they may as well be only myths and stories to read of times long past, something that could never come to pass in reality.

Yet the truth is far more sad - the enemies of the world will never truly sleep, merely rest between their onslaughts, when they are called upon again by their dark masters to sow endless destruction. It is a sadness to know that some day, even my little daughter's eyes will be open to this truth, and the image she has of the world now will be shattered to pieces. Harder for this one to accept, then, is that like her father, this revelation of the truth will only push her to try and restore it, for as there will always be enemies who wish to bring only pain and suffering to the world, there will always be heroes who rise to save it. It is an honorable path, but a dangerous one, and one many perish on. Hardest to accept is that should she choose to take such a path, then she, too, could perish...my sweet, young, innocent Khinashi. This one cannot comprehend the grief and sadness she would forever feel if she would ever lose her.

"Mother?"

My daughter's voice breaks me from my thoughts, and I continue to tug and twist as I braid her lengthy mane, coiling it about her head as she prefers, in a wrap at the back.

"Yes, Ma'nashi? What is it?"

Khinashi has far passed the age to be called as such, two months shy of fifteen years on Nirni now, no? But to this one she will always be Ma'nashi, and she has ceased to protest this fact.

"Khinashi was thinking, about the Festival of the Third Moon, this one will be able to go to it, yes? To participate, and watch the m-the performers?"

My daughter turns her head around, ears perking up as she gazes eagerly, expectantly upon me, awaiting a response. It is a question that has been on her mind for some time now, Tatanja can tell. Those bright amber eyes that could light up a moonless night, staring deep into mine, eyes the same of my own. She may have been born under a new Jone and Jode, looking contrarily different to her Ohmes-Raht mother, and she may share the dark stripes of her father lined about her, and the white patches about her muzzle, but her golden eyes and tawny fur make it doubtless from whom she was birthed.

With a final twist and tug of a braid that fell loose from her sudden movement, this one decides to finally greet her question with an answer.

"Hmm...perhaps, my cub, so long as you stay out of trouble until then, yes? Do not think this one has forgotten your forest escapade last week. You could have seriously hurt yourself or Ma'ketra. Senche-Tigers may look like Pahmar but they are not Pahmar, nor Senche. It is with luck that Jahirr had come to help you."

Her face saddens with ears drooping, she tries to turn face but this one pulls her chin back up to meet her eyes, and Tatanja smiles down to her.

"But you were right to save it. They may not be Khajiit but they are living creatures, and no creature deserved to be caught in such a painful trap."

A smile twitches about the edges of her face, but fades away. This one can tell she is having an inner debate with herself. She is such a well-meaning child, and it would do this land well for more to think like her, to treat the lesser cats like peers and show kindness to them, not let hunters into our lands for 'sport'. Even our two-legged kind have started to look down upon those true Khajiit on all fours, as if they were any different than us. These are our families and neighbors, members of our community. All Khajiit should be equal, regardless of form. As it had been, as it should still be.

"This one will not make trouble, she promises."

"It is not the making of trouble this one worries for...but, all right. You, J'shabi and the others can go, I would not want to keep you from this. It is a once in a lifetime event, no? Not something you would want to miss. Just stand clear of the flaming torch jugglers, this one has heard of...accidents having happened before..."

The smile widens on my daughter's face, but is soon replaced with a look of curiosity, or perhaps confusion, this one is about to ask what is on her mind, but she speaks-

"Why is it called the Festival of the Third Moon, anyway? It is just an eclipse of the sun and the two moons, not three, no?"

"Hah, do not let Clan Mother Zalani hear you say that or you would be picking the sugar fields for days! But yes, that is really all it is, but it makes it no less important."

"So why do they not just call it the Festival of the Eclipse?"

"Because it does not sound as good, is that not a good enough reason as any?"

This one smiles, but it is clear she is genuinely curious as to a better answer. She is always so curious.

"But no, no one truly knows why. Some say old moon priests mistook the sun as a third moon in ancient times, while others say there once was a third moon, it is hard to tell the truth from the flavour when dealing with priests, but while the legend changed, the name stayed, the festival stayed, and it is of course when the lunar champions are born, no less different than before."

With her braided mane finished, she rises from the chair she was sitting on and walks over to the window to gaze upon the moonlit sky. It is getting late, and cubs like her should have been in bed hours ago. She had eaten too much moon sugar at dinner tonight - understandable for today was that of the Feast of the Tiger - which has kept her awake longer than she should be, but that would not be an acceptable excuse for much longer.

"It is getting late, kitten, you must sleep now. It has been long enough now that you should be feeling normal again, but if not, you must at least try. Besides, you must get some sleep if you are to be awake for when your father returns tomorrow morning, and this one is sure he will have some news to bring from Dune, if not presents too."

The mention of her father – or perhaps the presents - seems to spark her into action, she smiles and says good night, before bounding off down the hallway and up the stairs with her tail lashing back and forth. It had been about a week since Jo'azha left for Dune to investigate some break-in or other at the temple of the Two Moons Path, and the death of a moon priest shortly after. What a thief could want from that place, this one cannot imagine, for the temple is usually barren for decades until it comes time for a new lunar champion to walk the path and become the Mane.

No matter, it is getting late, and just as Khinashi has made way for bed, the land of dreams beckons to call this one into their grasp as well. The Festival of the Third Moon will begin in three days, and Jo'azha will return tomorrow, it will be nice to share in this celebration with those Tatanja loves dearly, for these moments are the ones she cherishes most, those in the times of peace - when the enemies of the world are still at rest, and the heroes have not yet the need to rise.


	2. Chapter 1: New Muzzle on the Block (P1)

**Chapter 1: New Muzzle on the Block (Part 1)**

An ear-piercing roar engulfs this one, and she feels the cold sting of water splashing into her face. Khinashi gasps, struggles for air, and coughs out water that threatens to consume her, until a heavy thump on her head tells her she is truly awake. Her fur is drenched, and she lays face-first on the hard wooden floor just beyond her bed, with the rest of her body still hanging onto it.

She rolls forward to bring herself to level ground and then holds a paw to her now-bruised forehead to calm the pain as she rises to confront the two miscreants who did this to her – a small Alfiq perched on the fluffy head of a Senche with a now-empty bucket hanging from her jaw.

"Paws! Ketra! Why did you do this? If you wanted to wake this one up...You could have just, well you did not have to drench her in rainwater!"

Their only response to their crime is for Ma'ketra to look at the ground guiltily, and for Smallpaws to lick his fur clean. Paws always did love to use his illusion spells to sound like a raging Senche-Raht, although it could have just as well had been Ma'ketra who roared were it not for the bucket of water she held. The sound alone would have been enough to wake her, but this one knows those two will use any excuse to take mischief to the fullest.

"You must have had a reason though, what is it?" Still tending to the bruise, Khinashi walks over to a window in her room and peers out of it, and is greeted with a bright sun shining down on an active marketplace. Colourful birds strut their wings and sail forth into the forests, while the energetic monkeys swing from vines and branches. Each add their piece to the symphony of discord only a true jungle dweller could appreciate. Ah, It must be mid-day now, at least.

The sound of Ma'ketra scratching the floor tells Khinashi her question was not direct enough.  
This one scoffed inwardly at herself, and corrected it.

"Sorry, uhm...Did someone call for Khinashi?" The two cats respond with a nod.

"Oh, who would-" Before continuing, the answer became obvious.

"Wait, is Khinashi's father back then?" It is difficult to keep the eagerness out of this one's voice, Khinashi had been waiting for her father to come back and tell her about what happened at Dune since...since he had left for Dune about a week ago. The Mane asked him directly to look into it, so it must be important, and Khinashi is going to find out what it was even if she has to ask him more than once!

The two cats nod again, almost mimicking her eager expression, and she knows that they will want to know as well when he tells her. They trod down the stairs, their mission complete, and off to no-doubt find some other havoc to create.

Without hesitation, Khinashi springs into action, gathering her clothes to wear for the day. She pulls on her cream-coloured budi, and ties it into braids at the right side with a sash around her waist. She pulls up her bright orange, loose-fit strides and finishes with a matching shawl and hood about her neck and shoulders.

With that done, Khinashi leaps down the stairs of her room, far enough that she skips every step and rolls after she lands, and re-balances herself just before she would have hit the wall. It was a long jump, three times her size and half that in distance, but it was no trouble for her. The noise of this stunt alerts her mother in the kitchen that she is awake, as well as her aunt Jo'banja, who hisses at her, as she looks up from the book she was reading.

"Do you really have to do that every day, Ma'nashi? You are going to hurt yourself one of these times...or break something."

"This one could climb out of her window and jump from trees like a Dagi if you would prefer, yes?"

Mother is always so kind and caring, but sometimes this one thinks she worries too much. It is in the nature of a Suthay to be agile and light on their feet. If it were anyone else she would have not said a word.

Her response was to give me one of those looks, the kind where she twists her mouth and looks up with her head down. It means she knows this one is not being serious, but that her mocking tone is unappreciated. It means the best course of action is to change the subject.

"Mother, where is father at?"

"He is just outside next door, talking to the Clan Mother. He has something to tell you, Ma'nashi, but first-"

"Thanks, bye!"

"Ma'nashi! Surely you should eat something first? It does not do well for growing cubs to eat so little."

" _Fusozay_ , this one is not hungry, she will wait until lunchtime, or dinner if it is that late."

"Dinner indeed, Ma'nashi. At least take this then, you can eat it on the way. It used to be your favorite, no?"

Mother is about to walk to me, but this one raises her hands up, and signals for her to throw whatever it is. Seconds later a delicious-looking Moon-Sugar biscuit lands in her paws. So sweet and soft, buttery and filling. Indeed, it will hold her hunger until dinner time.

Khinashi smiles and waves to her mother as she leaves through the doors of the house, down the stairs, and across the rope bridge to the main wooden platforms. In seconds the biscuit is devoured, and she can already see her father speaking to Clan Mother Zalani in the distance, standing in the shade beneath the support trees at the center of our quarter. The two Cathays seem to be having a debate. There is another Khajiit next to them, a young Dagi boy, around Khinashi's age she can tell, and about a head shorter if he were standing straight. He wears the garb of a desert-dwelling Khajiit from the north, and Khinashi can tell he has a look of uncertainty, perhaps anxiety, on his face. He has silver eye slits and his fur is...hmm? That is odd... One side of his face is black while the other is ginger, with splashes of ginger, white and black all about his coat in a calico pattern.

Strange. This one remembers overhearing her parents long ago say it is rare for Khajiit boys to have such a fur pattern, and there is something special about them, but in what way she does not know, for she could not understand the meaning of the words they used.

"So what do you suggest then, we just call him 'Dagi'? That would be too confusing!" Zalani roars out. She never was a very happy person. Mother always says it is just the stress that comes from her position, and not to think badly of her.

"It's his choice if he wants to keep his name a secret. He's been through a lot in the past few days. I can understand if he wants to be able to move on, without being reminded of what he lost."

"Hmph. We have all lost things, Jo'azha. That does not mean we change our names every time we do to forget about them. But very well, Zalani can tell this will not be getting anywhere. 'Dagi' it is. Welcome to Torval, may you reap what you sow."

Some nearby birds jump and fly away as Khinashi skids to a halt just before the three Khajiit. Father looks happy to see her, Dagi looks confused, and Zalani wears her ever-plastered look of dissatisfaction.

"Father, you're back! So what happened in-"

"Ah, Khinashi," Zalani interrupted. "You have come just in time, this one has another task for you."

"What? But Khinashi did not break anything yet!"

"Hmph. You had better hope you will not either, yes? No. The new arrival here – _Dagi_ _-_ he is to be called, needs a tour of the city he will be living in. This one has other things to discuss with your father here, and seeing as he is to be living with your family and your...' _House of Cats_ ', it would do well for you to be acquainted. Now go, this one will not take no for an answer."

"Yes Clan Mother Zalani but first this one wishes to speak to her father about-"

"Go!"

"Yes Clan Mother Zalani..."

"Sorry, Khinashi. We can speak later, after you and Dagi finish your tour."

Father kneels down and looks at Khinashi with his emerald gaze, and a gentle, reassuring smile, and places a hand on her shoulder.

"Don't worry, my cub. This shouldn't take too long."

This one stares evenly at his gaze, and finds she cannot argue. For all his ashy fur, greying mane, and worn-out robes, he is nothing if not persuasive. Yes, it can wait.

And who is this 'Dagi' hmm? Why is he called that, and why is he here? Khinashi will know who is to live with us, but she is happy he is here, for a new face is always welcome, especially one who has many tales to tell!

And so she says all of this to Dagi as they walk away from her father and Clan Mother Zalani.

"This one would prefer not to talk about it...He does not want to talk about anything of his past before today."

His response catches this one off guard. It was not what she was expecting him to say. Why would he not want to talk about it? Surely he will want to tell those he will be living with where he came from, and what he has done? Perhaps he is just shy, and needs encouragement.

"Are you sure? Khinashi means...This one has big ears, yes? She hears many things, but she does not have to say them. She can listen and keep secrets."

"No. Please...You do not...You do not...Just, let us talk of something else. Please."

It was as if the bridge she is walking on now suddenly collapsed and fell for no reason, she has not had this happen before, she does not know how to respond to it. She has had to convince people of her trustworthiness before they would tell her secrets, but Dagi - he seems firm on not wanting to tell Khinashi...Which only makes Khinashi want to know even more. If a secret is worth keeping secret, it must be a very interesting secret, no? This one will find a way to persuade him to tell her, it will just take time...

"Okay, that is fine. You do not have to tell Khinashi, it is no problem. Not at all. So, uh, let us actually start the tour, yes? You see that house father and Clan Mother Zalani were at? That is Clan Mother Zalani's house. It is big, rich, and stocked full of moon-sugar sweets. Or so this one hears from those with less delectable tastes in hobbies..."

"Why is everything...so high up?"

Once more the question had not been one she was expecting. Why is everything not so high up? It has always been so, and she sees no reason it will ever be otherwise. Is it not the same elsewhere? But she does not tell him this, for it would be rude.

"Which do you mean? The platform bridges, the rope bridges, the houses, or the trees?"

"Well...Everything. When this one came here he had to walk up steps about ten times his height just to get on the 'platforms'! And it seems like everything is up here, what if someone fell off?"

This one laughs at the statement, though he seems quite serious, if a bit scared.

"Well there are safety rails in place so you do not, silly. Besides, if everything were on the ground, we would be living underwater during the summertime! Khajiit do not breathe water...or maybe you do?"

"You mean it rains so much the water reaches as high as the platforms?"

He looks bewildered at the thought. Why is this so strange to him? Did he not know he was coming to a rain forest valley city?

"Of course! Well...not that high, it only usually gets to about a Cathay's length lower than the bridges, except for one year it came real close, we had thought we would be riding our boats just to get to the marketplace for sure!"

"So that is what the docks are for then? If this one is to guess they are docks...It looked strange, but if it floods here it makes sense."

"Hah, no. This one doubts it will truly ever come to that. Those are for the high water seasons to get from Torval to other places in Elsweyr. The stone roads you see on the ground now are the waterways we use in those seasons."

"And the trees?"

"What about them, hmm? We are not responsible for how tall they are. Have you never seen the Tenmar forest before? In the forest there are four levels we divide it into. The forest floor is anywhere between the ground and where are houses are at. Today we are in the middle of the month of Last Seed, so that is the area that will be underwater in about seven months. The understory is from our houses until the tops of the smallest trees above them, the roofs of the tallest houses in the city reach that point. Beyond that is the canopy layer, the layer most abundant with fruits and animals, much of our food source comes from that – after being glazed with moon-sugar of course – and the tallest trees you might see in the distance is the emergent layer. Some Khajiit say it would take over 30 Cathays standing on each other's heads to reach the top of some of the trees! As a Suthay this one is a couple heads shorter than a Cathay, so you can imagine how many Khinashi's it would take to reach it!"

As this one is speaking, Dagi looks as if he is lost in thought, a bad thought, for an expression of fear is worn on his face, and his tail twitches. Khinashi looks around to see what might be frightening him, but can see nothing but the hustle and bustle of the nearby marketplace, and so continues.

"Many of the Dagi here in Torval collect the fruit from those trees, and often play games climbing all the way to the highest ones. Perhaps that is something you could do as well, hmm? You might like it."

The expression of fear intensifies until the blacks of his eye slits encompassed the entirety, and his ears flatten against his head. He blinks, looks at the ground, and then to Khinashi.

"No, no. This one will find something else to do."

"Is something troubling you, Dagi?"

"No, let us continue the tour. This one saw you run out of that house there, next to the Clan Mother's, is that yours then?"

"Ours, yes. For it is yours as well as Khinashi's now. Mother and Father - er, you would know them as Tatanja and Jo'azha - are the caretakers of what we call the 'House of Cats'. To some it would be seen as an orphanage, others would see it as a community schoolhouse for Khajiit, but neither give it justice."

This one takes a deep breath before continuing. She remembers saying this many times before to others before him, some who have come and gone, others who stay even today.

"It is a home for Khajiit who, for one reason or another, find they could be raised better with us than their other alternatives. This could be because they no longer have a home for themselves, or anyone to call their family. This could be because as Khajiit, they may have been born to a form unable to raise and teach them properly...Not because they are unwilling, no. Think of two Alfiq, if they were to give birth to a child or children under the phase of the Senche, how is it that they would teach the Senche how to hunt, how to make best use of their abilities? They could not, and so if the parents prefer, they could let their child stay with us, for we have Khajiit of many forms as tutors and mentors to help any form of Khajiit prosper. That is actually why our two Senche – Ma'ketra and Ma'krin, twins they are, have come to us. Their Alfiq parents sought us out to guide them properly on the way of the Senche, and Jahirr, our Pahmar-Raht helper, closest to that of the Senche form, does just that. Or, well he tries to, anyway...The twin's parents love them no less, and they come to visit them sometimes too, it is always a fun occasion."

"That is very kind of your parents, and for you, to open your home to those less fortunate of us. It is good to know this one will have a home, and people to call a...Family, again."

Khinashi tilts her head to the side, and tries to study Dagi's expression for any hints that might reveal the events that brought him here. He has never seen a rain forest before, he wears the garb of a badlands desert-walker, and he arrived with father from his trip to Dune. Whatever happened there might be related to what brings him here, or perhaps father found him on the way back?

"Uh, could we continue? This one sees there is much more of the city to explore."

"Ah, yes, we could try and find the others who live with us. There is J'shabi, who is about our age, Ma'ketra, Ma'krin, and Jahirr who this one already mentioned, and Smallpaws and Jo'banja, a young Alfiq boy and his Alfiq-Raht mentor, whom is Tatanja's younger sister, and Khinashi's aunt. Jahirr and Ma'krin might be busy at the Moon-sugar plantation over there, just to the west of the Clan Mother's house on the hill, where the bridge ends and grass meets. The workers there do not take kindly to Khajiit children wandering about the area unsupervised, so we will meet them later, but as for the others-"

A loud growl drowns out the rest of Khinashi's sentence, and she and Dagi look to the marketplace from which it came.

"What in the twin moons are you doing!?" A khajiit trader exclaimed.

There is a loud snap as one of the Moon-sugar sweets stalls legs broke into two, and all of the contents of the stall – delicious, moon-sugar biscuits, glazed sweet rolls, and small pocket candies spill into the marketplace floor. Chaos soon follows with Khajiit children running to snatch them up while the adults are busy helping the stall owner – although this one sees a couple adults walk away with some of the sweets as well...

Khinashi laughs, as half the stock of the trader is soon devoured by onlookers, for she knows who was responsible for it.

"Well, now we know where Ma'ketra and Smallpaws are at."

"They did this?"

Before we could continue our conversation, we see Ma'ketra being pulled across the market floor square, scratching deeply into the bridge as she is, by an Imperial guard with one hand. In his other is Smallpaws squirming about trying to break free. He brings them up to the stall owner.

"I caught the cats who damaged your stall. I saw them running off in the other direction when it happened, and I've seen them pull other stunts before, no doubt it was them."

"Then it does not matter. Let them go...Even if we could prove it to the Mane, he would not have them held responsible, Jo'azha would not allow it. This one will just have to rebuild, again. Stupid cats, the four-legged should not be allowed in the marketplace, they cannot buy things! They are little more than over-privileged pets! Hmph."

"Do you want me to talk to the caretakers to see about any reimbursement for the damage?"

"No, as this one said, do not trouble yourself with impossibilities. This one will rebuild, and hang on to hope for change."

"Very well. Then let's hope this doesn't happen again, or I'll see to it that you're dragged back to the barracks myself, cats." The guard finished. Paws and Ketra's eyes winced at the thought of staying a night in the cold jail beneath Torval. It is the only part of Torval not made out of wood, built underground deep below the Imperial district of the city in the east, completely submerged in the high water seasons.

The guard reluctantly lets Ma'ketra go, and then drops Smallpaws, who twists in mid-air to land on his feet, before they scurry off into the distance.

"That was not very nice." Dagi started.

"No, it was not, but then Ma'ketra and Smallpaws are known for that sort of thing, it is how they make their entertainment, they are there to make people laugh, including themselves."

"No, this one means what the stall owner said, about the four-legged Khajiit."

"Ah, yes...There are some Khajiit in the Tenmar area who have taken too strongly to the Empire's influence here, and as a result have seen some Khajiit as...Less than Khajiit, but they are the few. Do not worry yourself, you will not find many like the stall owner here."

"Dagi hopes so."

There is an uneasy silence as we watch the stall owner grumble while he began fixing the broken stall, spluttering aimless insults. It would be best to move on now.

The crowd of Khajiit, with a few humans and elves mixed about, disperse and return to their daily routines. The bright sun that peeks through the clearing, casting down shadows about the many wooden walkways, is slowly turning amber.

"Well, you have seen Ma'ketra and Smallpaws. They are best friends, partners in crime, like brother and sister, moreso than Ma'ketra's actual brother Ma'krin, whom is usually found sleeping somewhere almost all day, when he is not being trained by Jahirr, or eating unhealthy amounts of Moon Sugar. Next we shall look for J'shabi, for it will be no trouble finding her, no doubt she is training under Master Do'hasrandru and her classmates at the Temple of the Two Moons Dance near the Mane's palace. It is just west of the marketplace, over here."

As we continue onward, the leaves of the trees above give way to the sight of the mane's gigantic wooden palace, and Khinashi watches as Dagi looks in awe and amazement.

It must be quite a sight to someone who has never seen it before - the graht-oak palace, standing as tall as five Cathays at some points, with colourful painted domes for roofs with three separate floors within. The stairs lead up to it on the grassy hill much like that of the plantation to the north, except there was much detail put into these stairs, and into the tiles leading up to the courtyard. The fountain statue in the center of the plaza depicted Rid-t'har-ri'datta, was crafted with both great skill and respect, and even the wooden beams under the courtyard awnings looked as if the artisans left no square inch of the palace undercoated with carvings. The Moon Sugar gardens surrounding the wooden walls of the palace on all sides add to this pleasent ambiance with their beckoning fragrance.

Khinashi remembers when she was younger, she and her friends would often play tag about the palace courtyard, until the Mane's speaker forbade it, and now we are not allowed on the grounds at all except for important circumstances.

But we will not be going there today anyway. We continue down the path heading south from the main square of the palace quarter, leading up to a smaller wooden palace albeit no less respectful in the designs and carvings about it. A colourful wooden Jone and Jode icon hanging above the door told us we arrived at the Temple of the Two Moon's Dance. The finest martial arts temple in Elsweyr.

"What do you know of the Two Moon's Dance, Dagi?"

"Only that it is a temple where people train to fight. This one has not had much chance to know more, for there is not one in Dune."

"Aha, so you are from Dune, then!" Khinashi exclaims with an overly-eager face. Perhaps it was not good to seem so happy that she had learned something of his past...For his response was to look away and end the conversation.

Awkardly, we step inside and pass through the curtains to enter the main hall proper, where many students of the dance are in the middle of hand-and-tail battles with their fellow classmates. The hall is lit with many candles about the wall, and all the combat taking place fills the already humid air with even more sweat, it is almost like breathing water.

Master Do'hasrandru - an elderly Suthay-Raht with plain silver fur and thick white, braided hairs hanging from his muzzle - and his burly assistant Tolgun Wide-Hand - a similarly-aged Nord with also white, long hair and a knotted beard - oversee the battles taking place with scrutiny, as if they are mentally grading their performance.

After a bit of searching, Khinashi finds J'shabi in the far north side of the hall, locked in combat with a large Cathay-raht boy with dark black fur, save for the white that patched his muzzle and neck. He is almost twice her size, three times her width, and easily a few years older than her. This one recognizes her opponent as Do'shoren, a student near the top of his performance chart for his age grouping. They say the first and most important lesson they teach here is to dismiss one's vanity. From what she has heard and seen of Do'shoren, this one thinks he slept in when that lesson was taught. Normally they would not pit two students of such an age and skill difference against eachother, perhaps it is a special event? Khinashi can tell by their swift, melodic movements that they are practicing Whispering Claw.

"Look, over there, that is J'shabi, the one with the feathered ponytail."

J'shabi is dodging heavy blows left and right, whilst issuing her own in the few moments she has over him. He is too strong, and too big, to merely deflect or defend them directly, for they would topple her over in an instant, and the battle would be over the moment one of the participant's backs or stomachs touch the floor. No, her objective is to wear him down, and then take her big shots. Large though he may be, he is not much slower than J'shabi from all of his training, and he has a natural endurance over her...as well as having a tail while she does not.

"You mean the Bosmer fighting the Cathay-raht? She looks in over her head. Is this safe?"

"Hah, Bosmer? No, do not let her catch you calling her that, Dagi, that is the first rule for living with her. She is an Ohmes, Khajiit same as we, and despite her Bosmer fur colour, she dislikes the idea of tattooing her face to look more like Khajiit."

The battle is nearly lost when J'shabi tries to fly kick him in the chest after dazing him from a side-wind strike. He recovers too quickly and grabs her leg, and throws her across the room, but J'shabi just manages to catch the floor with her hands and springs back up to land on her feet – the battle is not over yet.

"Oh, this one apologizes...It is hard to tell. Still, is she safe?"

"And the second rule..."

Do'shoren was already charging at her when she had sprung up with her hands, and now he will reach her and push her over by the time she's able to fully stand up, she will have no time to move out of the way.

But she does not stand up.

Just before he reaches her, she dives forward from her crouched position, toward his legs, and uses his height against him. In any other case he would have been too heavy to move, but as he was charging forward, he falls like a rock as she pushes his legs out, and catches her own balance to remain afoot. The fight is over, as he is planted face-first firmly on the floor, mumbling from the pain of smashing his muzzle.

"...Is to never underestimate her."

Dagi stares in astonishment, clearly impressed, if not a bit confused as to how a tiny Ohmes girl could take down the beast of the Cathay-raht she was pitted up against. If he had known the ferocity of J'shabi's passion that drives her it would perhaps not be so surprising.

Khinashi thinks back to the day she had joined us three years ago. She had always done much to try to fit in, even if she did not like the things she would have to do. She did not want to be seen as an outcast like she had been all the rest of her life. She had tried to become 'addicted' to Moon Sugar despite not liking the taste, changing her name to be more Khajiit-like, changing the way she speaks to fit the Elsweyr dialect. She almost did tattoo her face, despite not wanting to, to look more like Khajiit, but this one was able to convince her not to for that sake. No matter how many people may tease her or pick on her, she is Khajiit, 'it does not matter how you look, how you speak, what you like to eat, but who you feel you belong with'. And so she stopped her Moon Sugar 'craving', and speaks how she wants to now, but she decided to keep the name, for she feels a deeper connection with it than her old one. For it is us she feels she belongs with.

Since then she had taken up training in the Khajiiti martial arts of Goutfang, Whispering claw and Rawlith'Khaj in the Temple of the Two Moons Dance, for it is the one 'Khajiiti thing' she excels in most and enjoys. Khinashi still feels it is unnecessary for her to have to try and 'prove herself' to fit in, but at least this is something she enjoys doing.

Khinashi shakes herself to bring her back to the present. Do'shoren is having his muzzle tended to by one of the healers on hand in the temple, and J'shabi is talking with the Nord, Tolgun Wide-Hand, about the battle.

"With fighting like that you showed, it's a wonder people even use weapons nowadays, that right there was on par with any Companion I'd seen back in Skyrim."

"But was it really? He nearly got me down the moment he was able to grab me, if I hadn't been able to get back on my feet as quick as I did, he would have beaten me with a single move. I had hit him dozens of times, and it was only by luck that I managed to grab his legs and bring him down."

"All it takes is a single mistep out in the real world. Just focus on working with your strengths and trying not to allow your weaknesses to be exploited. Don't try and take on a strong enemy with brute force alone, and don't feel you stand less of a chance because you're weaker than them. You're faster, and more agile. You may have hit him a dozen times to little avail, but he could only hit you once out of the dozens of times he tried to. Think of it like that."

"Thanks, Tolgun. I will. And thanks for teaching me, again."

J'shabi crosses her arms and bows her head in gratitude, before turning to walk away. Her brown eyes meets Khinashi and a smile grows on her face, and her pace quickens. This one claps as she approaches.

"Good job taking down Do'shoren, you showed him! He will be reeling from that for days at the least!"

"So you finally decided to get out of bed then, huh? You missed a pretty funny morning when Paws managed to finally learn how to levitate things at the breakfast table. Starting with Ma'krin's bowl of milk...which he used to wake him up."

"Yes, Ma'krin was not the only one to be woken up in such a fashion today...This one had trouble sleeping last night, but it was not all bad, for she was able to finally ask her mother about us going to the Festival of the Third Moon!"

"So I take it by the way you're nearly bursting with excitement that we can go?"

"Yes! Well, so long as we stay out of trouble until then. This one thinks Ketra and Paws have already ruined their chance of going, but in all honesty that was not much of a surprise."

"What is though is that she's okay with us going. I would have thought for sure that once you mentioned the-"

"Yess well, this one perhaps neglected to mention the magic show to her. Khinashi means, it is a new thing, no? She does not know, and unless we had not overheard those travelers a few days ago we would not have known either. In this one's defence it is perfectly understandable that, from her mother's perspective, Khinashi would not have known about it until it happens."

"But you do know about it, and you didn't tell her."

"Khajiit are too fearful of magic, mother would not be able to understand. Father would, but he-"

"What magic show? You are talking about the Festival of the Third Moon, yes?"

This one realizes that she almost forgot Dagi was here, and that she is supposed to be giving him a tour of the rest of the city. Khinashi had been looking forward to the festival the moment she heard from those travelers about the magic show they plan to perform. J'shabi is not as excited about it as she is worried, but she knows Khinashi would love to see it, for she has always been interested in the magical arts, like her father.

"Who's this? Were you the one that Jo'azha had brought back from Dune?"

"Yes he is. He is called 'Dagi' for he will not tell us his real name. This one has been showing him around the city, he is new here to the Tenmar region of Elsweyr, and he will be living with us now."

"Pleased to meet you, Dagi. I'm J'shabi, but you probably already knew that if you were hanging around Khinashi all day. I hope you enjoy it here, the House of Cats can take some getting used to, especially if you're new to the Tenmar forest, but I think you'll fit right in."

"Same to you, J'shabi. This one is sure he will. You mentioned a magic show planned for the festival? Where did you hear of this?"

Hmm, he seems strangely curious about this peice of information. Is it perhaps relevant to his past? Perhaps Khinashi will take advantage of this...

"Oh, you know. Khinashi and J'shabi were wandering about the town a couple days ago when two Khajiit came in town and stayed at the Inn on the east part of town. We had been playing hide and seek at the time, and it just so happened that Khinashi chose to hide in an empty barrel that was inside the Inn, next to where the two Khajiit were sitting.-"

J'shabi looks at Khinashi in confusion. In truth it was not Khinashi who had been in the barrel but her, she had seen them through the window on the other side – it was J'shabi who overheard part of their conversation. If it were Khinashi, she would have heard the whole thing. Regardless, Dagi could not know this for her plan to work. She signals J'shabi to stay quiet. She does not seem happy about this.

"—They were clearly talking about the Festival of the Third Moon and plans for a magical event to take place. They seemed quite eager, but also quite clear that they wished it to be kept secret. For what better surprise is a magic show, hmm? This one has heard tales of the delightful colours displayed during them in the night sky."

"Did you see what they looked like? What they were planning to do? Anything else?"

"Alas, Khinashi did not see what they looked like. She could have, had she thought of it, perhaps she did? She was in a barrel, after all, and she was more interested in about what was being said than what they looked like...Why, do you think you may have known them?"

Dagi gives a cold, hard stare at Khinashi, while his ears turn sideways in annoyance. He knows what Khinashi is trying to do. If he were to inquire more about the subject it would confirm they may have had some relation to his predicament. If he wished to keep his secrecy he would have to let it go. Surely then, his secrecy would not be worth the chance of finding out more of the two travelers, whomever they may be to him?

"No. It was just...a curiosity is all. Nothing more."

Unfortunately not. It saddens Khinashi, she did not mean to hurt him or withhold information, but at the same time, she could not help but want to learn more about his past. Everyone has a story to tell, and for Khinashi whom has only been in Torval her whole life, her story is not a very interesting one, so she tries to learn others to make up for it, until the day she, too, can venture out and create her own, like her father did. Her father has many stories, much more interesting than hers will ever be...

For a few moments, we just stare at nothing, tails swaying back and forth, unknowingly blocking the only exit out of the temple of the Two Moons Dance. It is only when Do'shoren, still holding his wounded muzzle, nearly knocks Khinashi over as he shoves his way out of the temple that we remember to move.

"Well, that is all of the interesting parts of the city, Dagi. The rest you may feel free to explore yourself. You have met most of the Khajiit living with us, the others will probably be making their way back home soon for dinner, to which we should follow their example. You will never have had the luxury of tasting some of Tatanja's Moon Sugary-baked goods yet, this one is sure you will have no regrets when you do! So long as you eat your food before Ma'krin does!"

"With luck Ma'krin will probably still be asleep somewhere in the city and miss dinner, then he'll only be able to eat his own serving of food!" J'shabi responds, clearly the tense moment has passed.

"The horror!"

We laugh as we walk back toward the marketplace, even Dagi is beginning to lighten up a bit. Suddenly J'shabi's laughter abruptly stops, and is replaced with a silent anger. Confused, Khinashi looks about, and her eyes meet the figure sitting at the bottom of the steps from the palace plaza. It makes sense now.

Sitting on the blocks at the side of the steps is a Suthay-raht with white fur and black spots dotted about. He wears excessive piercings about his nose, chin and ears, heavy enough that to this day Khinashi is curious as to how he manages to move his ears about the same as anyone else. A red mane protrudes from his head in the center, standing straight up, almost unnaturally so, from where his ears are all the way to the back of his head. He wears the standard shawl, budi and strides as anyone else, but in dark, bold, rebellious colours, red and black, for no purpose other than itself. He will regret that on a particularly hot day eventually, of that this one is sure...It is the Speaker's son, who misses no opportunity to remind people of this.

"Dar'Zhar-do..." This one said under her breath, eyes already narrowing.

"Who?" Dagi questioned, also whispering as if by some mutual unspoken agreement we knew it best to be quiet.

"Just ignore him, Khinashi, maybe he won't notice-"

"Ah, La'nashi, such a fine day for a fine woman, yes? Why is it that you still hang around that-ow! What did you do that for!?"

This one found it extremely hard not to laugh as J'shabi stepped on Dar'Zhar-do's tail, ending his sentence. So hard in fact that she no longer tries to contain it, and just bursts out laughing.

"It's Khinashi, get it right or don't say it at all...And you should know better than to leave your tail hanging out on stairs where people walk, someone might step on it."

As Dar'Zhar-do tends to his wounded tail, Khinashi revels in the sight of him brought down to Nirn with the rest of us and not living in the clouds, but she knows it will not last much longer, and he will return to his pedestal within seconds, as we walk away-

"At least this one has a tail..."

Without even looking back, this one knows that J'shabi hearing that will have made her stop and turn around. If there were anything in the world that would forever upset her, it is Khajiit calling her something less than that.

"J'shabi-"

"And so what if I don't, "Dar'Zhar-Do"? I don't need to make myself feel better by giving myself two name titles I didn't earn to compensate for my failings."

"It is not compensation for failings it is the truth! This one is a warrior and a thief, or perhaps you need a demonstration?"

"J'shabi, don't-"

"I guess you haven't heard what I did to your friend then earlier. Do you want me to break your muzzle too so you can match? I think it'd look nice on you."

"Oh this one has heard what you did to Do'shoren. He deserves it too if he could allow himself to lose to an Elf pretending to be Khajiit!"

J'shabi cannot restrain herself any longer and lunges out at Dar'Zhar-do, but he does not move. He did not have to move, for Khinashi held her back before she made a scene and did something she would regret.

"Try it, try anything, Elf, this one dares you. Lay a claw-a finger, on Dar'Zhar-do and he will make sure his father has you deported back over the Xylo river to Valenwood."

Khinashi steps in between the two Khajiit, it is her turn to speak.

"And what makes you think he would listen to you? Do you not go on all the time of how you rebel against authority? Your father is near the highest seat of that authority, so you rebel against him."

"He would be at the very top if it were not for your father, you know...He made the wrong choice. Elsweyr would be a much better place if he were the Mane."

To this, Khinashi only laughs.

"Whatever it may have been, you would not have been born if that were the case. The Mane is the spiritual leader of Elsweyr and as such is not allowed to distract himself with having a family, so for the sake of your existence you must think Khinashi's father made the right choice, no?"

Dar'Zhar-do opens his mouth to respond, but the facts seem to sink in, and he reconsiders. Unwilling to admit defeat, he decides to change the subject.

"This one sees you have taken in another orphan, correct? You there, the Dagi. Do yourself a favour – leave Torval, leave the House of Cats, there is nothing for you here. You can do better for yourself than to associate yourself with the likes of her."

Dar'Zhar-do gestures toward J'shabi with a disgusted look.

"This one thinks he will decide for himself who he wishes to associate with, thank you." Dagi replies calmly, but in such a way that was clear he does not want to associate with him. Dar'Zhar-do walks off, shoving J'shabi as he passes her as an act to show that, if he did not win the argument, he did not accept defeat either. Only when we were sure he was out of earshot did we move or say anything.

"I can't believe that cat...It's as if just because I don't have a tail it somehow makes me not a Khajiit...Or is it something else?"

" _Thjiz_ , J'shabi. You know Dar'Zhar-do, he cannot accept that he is not the best at everything. To you he is just mad that you make a much better warrior than he will ever be, so he changes the rules of the competition so that you are not included. The easiest way to not let it bother you is to not want to be a part of his competition. For why would you play a game against someone who intends to cheat, hmm?"

J'shabi gives no response, and seems lost in thought, so we begin making our way home. The sun was turning bright orange now, and the stall owners are taking up their wares, while the store owners pull curtains to hide their glass windows. The daytime creatures are following suit in their own way, while the nocturnal ones will soon be waking up.

"What did he mean, when he said your father made the 'wrong choice'?" Dagi asks, as we pass the marketplace.

It is strange that Dagi does not know, if he comes from Dune, the place where the Two Moons Path that all Lunar Champions take to become the Mane, surely it would be widely known there?

"You do not know, then? Do you want the short explanation or would you prefer the full one?

"The full one, please."

"Ah, well then. It is a long tale... To begin with, this one's father – Jo'azha – is the Moon Hallowed of our current Mane. He is the one who guided the Mane through the various trials, and protected him as he walked the Two Moon's Path to become the Mane in Dune. It is a great honor, indeed, to be chosen as such, but this time the Moon Hallowed had another duty, one that, as of then had only happened one other time in history. He had to choose between two candidates to become the Mane."

Khinashi stops to look for signs that Dagi is following along. He nods, showing he understands it so far.

"Our current Mane, Rid-Rawl'vah, had a twin brother, as they were both born when the eclipse happened, both had the right of birth for their position. They were both raised by the Lunar Clergy in preparation for their path, like all before them, but the two were...very different Khajiit. Zara-chi felt his firm hand could help Elsweyr recover from the recent civil war at the time, but he was very ambitious, and stubborn. Rawl'vah was less interested in becoming mane but seemed more open to suggestions from the people, and more spiritually-minded. In the end, Jo'azha felt that Rawl'vah would make for the more suitable Mane, and Zara-chi never forgave him for this choice. He was forced to shave his own mane in reverence to his brother, and so as to not confuse the populace. It is true, he eventually did become the Mane's speaker through political skill, so he has attained a power close enough to that of which he sought...But as you can see, by how his son feels, he has never truly accepted it. He may harbor distaste for us forever because of it, and his son reflects this in his own actions."

"It seems petty to hate someone for a choice they could not avoid making, it is not his fault."

"Perhaps it merely shows he made the right one."

As the last few people still outside, we walk over the rope bridge and up the steps...At least, Khinashi and J'shabi did. This one turns around to see Dagi staring blankly at the rope bridge in front of him.

"Dagi? You will come inside, no?"

"Are you sure it is safe?"

"Safe? What, the rope bridge? This one should hope so, J'shabi and Khinashi crossed it just fine, you are smaller than us, it can hold your weight – it holds Jahirr's weight easily."

"Perhaps too small, this one could fall through the rope railings."

"Well then do not let that happen. Hold on to the rails, take slow steps - how come this is such a trouble for you? You act as if..."

Khinashi stops to think for a moment, as if earlier things were beginning to make sense. But that would be strange, for a Dagi...

"No, Dagi is not!"

Khinashi almost shook from the shock of how loud his voice had been. Within seconds he was across the bridge and walking up the steps in front of her and J'shabi. This one scratches her ears in confusion.

"So, this is home, then?" Dagi inquires, passing through the curtain doors.

"Home indeed. Welcome, Dagi." J'shabi responds.

"Home at last." This one finishes with a sigh.


	3. Chapter 2: New Muzzle on the Block (P2)

**Chapter 2: New Muzzle on the Block (Part 2)**

For a few moments, the only sounds are that of chairs being pulled out, bowls, plates and cups being layed out, and above all else, the sound of Ma'krin's tummy growling. It meant it was dinner time for the household and that a stampede of Khajiit of all forms would be gathering around the kitchen table soon, some in chairs, some on the table itself, and the ones too big for chairs would sit on the ground, but the faces of every Khajiit present would be on eye level across the room.

The others arrived as we did, coming from all corners of the house. Mother hurridly set the last few dishes on the table while simultaneously finishing the preparations for the food. The assembly was complete as Dagi, J'shabi and this one took their seats at the table, besides us are Father, Jo'banja, Smallpaws, Ma'ketra, Ma'krin, Jahirr, and Mother, who was still nearly at a running pace finishing the moon sugar delecacies. It would be a few minutes before she was done, which gave everyone an excuse to talk. It gave Khinashi an excuse to ask her father about Dune!

"So how did you become the Moon Hallowed?" Dagi asks, just before Khinashi would have spoken. This is fine, Dagi is eager to learn more about the Khajiit that brought him here, she cannot fault him for that. Perhaps knowing more about us will make him more comfortable with sharing his past as well.

"Moon Hallowed isn't something you 'become', it's more...something you're chosen for. I never expected I would be the one, I was still new in Elsweyr then, so I didn't really know much about what being the Moon Hallowed really meant either. I was helping Jahirr, over here, get back to his tribe here in Elsweyr when we passed by the shrine at the moonlit clearing. There was a long line of people there, each walking up to the shrine, praying, and walking away with disappointed faces. I was just there to ask for directions...I never would have imagined what it led to."

"So that is it? You just prayed at a shrine and you were chosen? Was it difficult – what you had to do as Moon Hallowed?"

Dagi reminds Khinashi of herself, back when she was just old enough to talk. This one would ask father about all of his adventures he had when he was younger. He would only tell her a little part of the story each day for months, until eventually there was nothing left to tell. Even when he was a cub, he led an exciting life. Like J'shabi he was not born in Elsweyr, and they both ran away from home when they were younger, but father never knew his blood parents, or any of his family. Raised in the Imperial City, he grew up hearing all about the tales about Champion of Cyrodiil, about how he and Martin Septim ended the Oblivion Crisis and saved the world, and then seemingly vanished. He wanted to be like him – except for the vanishing part – and became an adventurer. For many years he lived in the wilds, never resting in the same place twice, finding adventure any and everywhere. He travelled all over Tamriel, and studied magic from any place that taught it, even the College of Winterhold at the northern edge of the continent.

Then one day he met Jahirr during his travels and saved his life. Jahirr had been captured and taken away from his tribe in Elsweyr. He was being used as a pit animal inside a gambling den in Skyrim, being forced to fight wild animals he was put up against. Gamblers would place bets on which beast would survive a fight against another. His captors knew he was more than just a animal but an intelligent Khajiit, and thus able to easily defeat any beast the others would have brought, even one twice his size, but the other gamblers did not know this, and so they abused this to make a profit off of them, hopping from den to den. Father found out about the hideout and freed all of the creatures there, and it was a bloodbath as all of the gambler's "pets" turned on them. Father made his escape during the confusion, but noticed one of the creatures had followed him – Jahirr. At the time father had never seen a four-legged Khajiit before, but he had heard of them. He says their first meeting was quite amusing when he patronizingly tried to calm him as if he were a mindless beast.

And they became the best of friends and travelled everywhere together. Then he came to Elsweyr...and was chosen as the Moon Hallowed.

"The trials themselves? Not so much, Zara'chi and Rawl'vah were easy enough to work with, and the Lunar Clergy was able to help me through every step of the way with all of the customs and procedures. The populace weren't quite so happy about some outsider being involved in such an important tradition, but after awhile I was able to convince them. The hardest part of it all was the choice itself...During the trials, you have to work alongside the Lunar Champion and protect them, you learn some of their deepest secrets, what they're really like. Even though we had only known eachother for a couple weeks, it felt like I knew them as well as I would my best friend, like Jahirr. To have to choose between which of them would make the better Mane? Knowing that my choice would effect all of Elsweyr for the future, for better or worse? No, that wasn't easy, and to this day I still wonder if I made the right choice..."

"This one thinks you did, father. Ra-Zara'chi is not very nice. He always snaps at this one when she is nearby and he does not let us play in the Mane's courtyard anymore."

Father laughs, as he looks upon Khinashi, but then turns his head and his smile fades away.

"Perhaps. He was not always like that though- not always so foul-tempered. He always was the more serious one of the twins, and more stubborn if you ask me, but he was able to laugh and joke as well, like any Khajiit. And if you saw what I had seen during the trial of his past...You would understand why he acts the way he does now."

"What did you see, father?"

"Hmm-hmm, my little cub, It would not be right for me to say, that is something only he could tell you, but I doubt he will ever want to tell anyone, not even his own son. That is one secret that will likely remain so, I'm afraid."

Hmph, that is twice today someone has refused to share a secret. If Father does not want to speak of Zara'chi's past without his permission, it is unlikely he will be willing to speak of Dagi's, or what happened at Dune at all if it is related, unless...Dagi himself brings it up? But how? Hmm...Perhaps...

Mother finally finishes preparing the food and begins placing the main bowls and dishes out which held them, and afterwards pours out milk in the cups and bowls layed about the table.

The chaos that is an ordinary dinner soon follows, as every Khajiit makes their move for the tastiest looking morsels, except for J'shabi who always takes her food last, and Dagi, whom looks confused as he watches the scene unfold.

Paws makes his way across the table first and picks up a sugar-coated moonfish in his mouth, but upon returning to his plate, Mother, who was pouring out the milk in his bowl, accidentally tips it over when Ma'krin bumps into her from behind as he sneakily grabs a slab of meat off of father's plate while he was busy grabbing other treats. Mewing fills the air as Paws dodges the stream of milk pouring over the table, not wanting to get wet, and Ma'krin tries to hide before his theft was uncovered by crouching under the table. It was too late for him, though, as Mother pulls him out from under it by the tail and he is forced to relinquish the stolen slab of meat.

Father on the other hand, after realizing what happened, gives it back to Ma'krin, not wanting to eat it after it was bitten and slobbered on by him and laying on the dusty wooden floor beneath the table. It was Ma'krin's secret tactic of getting more than his share of the food: by making everyone else not want to eat theirs.

But Ma'krin is not the only one with tactics to smuggle more food, however...

"Here, Dagi, as this is your first day with us, you deserve the honor of having your pick of the litter for what you want to eat. What would you like? Moonfish, Sugarbread, Sweetmeats, or the fruit dish? Maybe some of each?"

All eyes look upon this one in confusion as to how Khinashi managed to get away unnoticed with an entire trays worth of food of all types. That is how it is here for Khajiit, after all, if you can snatch up more food than your shares worth without getting caught, your skill earned you your prize, but if you were caught you had to give it back.

Ma'krin growls enviously at Khinashi, and Dagi looks suspiciously at her wondering if it is a trick, if there are any strings attached to this one's generosity. His hunger wins over his paranoia, though, in the end.

"This one has never had the chance to eat such things before. For Dagi, Moon Sugar was only consumed during important days, in worship of the twin moons, and never in such a fashion, he is not sure it is wise for him to-"

"Varithjerno Dagi! Every day is 'important day' here in Torval, where the Mane resides and the Moons appear their largest, and is it not soon the Festival of the Third Moon anyway?"

"True, perhaps it is okay then, if only a little-"

"Take it all, rito, enjoy what we have to offer, as a welcome to your new home, and to your new family!"

This one sets down the tray in front of him at the table, and watches as he struggles to determine how much he should eat, if at all. Khinashi pulls out a sugar-coated papaya from under the table and partakes in her own feast as well. It would only be a matter of time, she knows, before the Moon Sugar takes its hold over him. It takes over all who are not accustomed to its effects, or those who eat too much of it at one time. Even some Khajiit, new to the sugar such as it turns out Dagi is, are vulnerable in smaller amounts.

Everyone now goes about enjoying their own part of the meal - some more greedily than others - and are lost admist their own conversations. Khinashi pretends to be listening to them, but her attention is actually elsewhere. Dagi looks about to see the others feasting, even J'shabi who now has her own portion. Upon seeing no ill effects illustrated on their faces or in their actions, Dagi finally takes a bite into one of the Moon Sugar glazed sweetrolls. From the corner of Khinashi's eyes she can see his whiskers twitch, and his eyes widen, as he sinks deeper into another sweetroll, and then to some fruit – and then the moonfish, and the sugarbread.

"You know, Dagi, if you're not used to eating Moon Sugar you should really be careful how much you-"

Khinashi kicks J'shabi in the shin under the table to cut her sentence off, this one's mischevious smile is enough to answer why Khinashi had done so. J'shabi's only response is to sigh and roll her eyes.

Almost half the platter has been devoured now, and Dagi's tail swings back and forth as he ungracefully shoves more sweets into his face.

"Look out, Ma'krin, you seem to have competition for your insatiable sugar cravings, Dagi might be taking the lead now." Khinashi jokes, but Ma'krin's envy does not seem to waver. Frowning, Khinashi decides to give Ma'krin something more to eat as well, tossing him a sugar-glazed apple, which he steps back to catch in his mouth.

The others are nearly finished with their part of the meal and yet Dagi still continues to feast. Khinashi is becoming worried for him now, she only meant for him to eat enough to weaken the restraints on his mind, but he seems to genuinely crave the sugar, and at the rate he is going...

This one rises from her chair to walk over to him.

"Uh, Dagi? You are okay, yes? You have eaten quite a lot of Moon Sugar..." Khinashi says, placing a hand on his shoulder. He jumps from the touch and turns his head around quickly, and his eyes...Oh no. Khinashi remembers that look from when J'shabi made herself addicted to Moon Sugar long ago...

He is hallucinating.

* * *

"He will make a full recovery, he did not break any bones." Mother says, as she descends the stairs into the kitchen where Khinashi sits.

The words give this one comfort, to know he will be okay, and that he will not suffer lasting consequences of this one's foolishness, and yet...Only part of her own pain has lifted, for the guilt of knowing this had only happened at all because of her is just as bad, and that pain will take longer to heal than any wound could.

Khinashi looks up from the table she had been staring at and notices then just how dark the sky is through the windows. It must be very late now, for the moons shine in their prime - perhaps a few hours since the incident. She knew the others had all gone asleep already, all but Khinashi and her Mother. This one could not sleep, no, and not just because her room is currently occupied by an injured Dagi, for as he does not have his own room yet, they needed somewhere to work and mend his wounds - it is the guilt that keeps her awake.

Mother sits down beside Khinashi and places a hand on this one's shoulder.

"Do not blame yourself, Ma'nashi, you were just being generous. It is not your fault, you did not know he would eat so much."

This one looks as far away from Mother as her eyes allow. It only deepens the wound of her guilt for her to say this. They did not know that Khinashi had did this in an attempt to trick him into telling us about his past, or what happened at Dune. Father, who had spent the past hour talking to the Clan Mother, the town guards, and the shop keeper, to explain why there was a gaping hole in the side of the wall of his shop, did not know. Mother who speaks to me now clearly does not know.

J'shabi knows, but she respected Khinashi enough to not tell anyone, but the look in her eyes tells this one it will be a long time before she forgives Khinashi, and some time before she will even want to speak to her. The silence speaks enough in itself.

Dagi knows, of course, but he is asleep, or unconcious. Khinashi knows to expect harsh punishment when he tells them.

"This one could never have imagined that boy could move so fast... and to climb those trees like he did, he may be a Dagi, but he might as well have been a bird!"

"He would not have fallen if he had wings, Mother."

Mother's smile turns to a frown as she realizes that was a poor comparison. She only tries to ease the tension, of course, but it is not helping. Were it not for that conveniently hanging vine beyond the thick branches protruding nearby our house, and her Father's quick-thinking, skill and agility – far more than an old Cathay like him would normally have – the outcome would not have been a laughing matter. Were it not for Khinashi, this situation would not have happened in the first place.

"He will be waking up soon, you know? He will not feel pain. Your Father's healing magic and the supply of healing potions your aunt Sabanja left us with have seen to that."

This one smiles at the thought. Khinashi has felt the power of both his healing magic and her potions first-hand on many occasions, Dagi is in good hands indeed. The Tenmar is ripe with many plants that Sabanja can use to create potions and cures for almost everything. Strange it is that she does not live here.

"Ma'nashi, if it would make you feel better, you could go to him. Apologize if you feel you have anything to feel sorry for, or just talk to him. He is well enough for that."

Hmm, perhaps this one could. Would he even want to speak to Khinashi though, after what happened? Would he be able to forgive her? He could have been seriously hurt because of Khinashi's foolishness, and J'shabi - her best friend for years - has not said a word to her since the event, and she is not the one who got hurt. They both know Khinashi is the only one responsible for this.

But then, does it matter? Khinashi does not expect – perhaps does not even want – to be forgiven, it could help Dagi to know Khinashi is sorry, and that she will not ask about his past anymore. This one has learned her lesson, even if it did take this to happen to teach her it.

"Thanks, Mother. This one will speak to him."

Khinashi rises from her chair and makes her way to her room, up the stairs and down the hall, the room first on the left. Her room. Through the curtains she sees the form of Dagi tucked under the covers. He has no visible wounds from what she can see, this makes her happy.

Khinashi sits down on the chair by her desk, across from the bed, and thinks. What will she say? What is there to say? Is it even right to say anything – he looks so peaceful, asleep, perhaps it would be better not to wake him, to just let him rest and recover.

Or perhaps that is just as well, for it might be easier to speak if he is asleep. If she talks low enough he might not be able to hear.

Yes, that is what she will do.

"Dagi, this one is not sure if you can hear her, but Khinashi is sorry. She means it, she never wanted any of this to happen. Not just for giving you too much moon sugar, not just because this one's plan went wrong, but for everything. You have come here hoping for a new home and family, to leave behind your past, but this one would not let you leave it – Khinashi would only keep pestering, and asking about it. This one had no right to do that, it is your secret to keep. She sees now that this was wrong. She has learned her lesson, and she will leave you be, alone, if you prefer. You deserve far better than what you were given, far better than this one has been to you..."

Khinashi sits for a few more moments, thinking if there is anything else to be said. She decides that is enough, and rises from her chair to leave him to his peaceful dreams.

"This one's father was a moon priest, who tended to the temples of Jone and Jode. We lived in Dune." Dagi speaks, softly but clearly, as Khinashi was just at the curtains. He was not asleep?

"Dagi?"

"He was a Cathay, like your father, Khinashi. Mother was a Dagi, like this one. Father was not always a priest, of course, for this one would not have been born were that the case. It was after Mother died on a hunting trip, out in the Tenmar a few years ago. She could climb and swing to the highest trees with ease at lightning speed and was a master archer. Her speed and agility were unmatched...apparently, the same was not so for her balance, or so they say."

Why was he telling her about his parents, and his past? He did not need to, Khinashi had already learned it was not nice to ask about it.

"Dagi, you do not need to tell this one anything, it is-"

"Before today this one had never been to the Tenmar it is true, but we lived close by, in Corinthe. We moved after that - the memories. This one was not sure he wanted to see it. Father looked to the divines, and the moons for guidance. This one did not pay much heed to them, Dagi did not care. If it is true that the divines guide our destinies, then they are cruel, and this one would have nothing to do with them. No amount of worship saved mother, or later father."

This one feels sadness as he says his tale, she did not expect it to be one of woe, but perhaps it is obvious, for not many whom find their way without their parents at their side often have happy things to share, she should have realized. Khinashi only hopes this is helping him to talk about it, and that he is saying it because he freely chooses to.

"And then Father... His passing was not long ago. He was found dead outside of the city, any wild animal could have done it, he was unnarmed; unskilled in combat. He may have just wandered too far and was unlucky, or so they say."

What? Is this related to what happened at Dune, then? He does not sound so sure of his claim.

"You do not think that was the case, then?"

"At first it was strange, but believable. This one had seen two travellers talking to him a couple days before. Dagi had suspicions, but nothing more. When those same two later sought this one out to end his life..."

"So when you were hallucinating, then, and you thought J'shabi and Khinashi were assassins..."

"There were no trees to climb, but buildings can be just as good of an escape route. Needless to say the ending was much different."

"Why did you not tell anyone about them, then, the guards, the Clan Mothers? Does this one's Father know?"

"Khinashi, this one does not think they simply decided to kill Dagi's Father for no reason. We did not have much wealth, the only thing else is information, perhaps he knew too much. They must think Dagi knows too much as well, but he is clueless save for small peices, but that is besides the point. If they think this, then anyone Dagi knows would also be in danger. They may not know where this one is, but if word spreads about them they will know where to look."

"But it is only two people, Dagi, surely they can be caught before they do anything else?"

"What if they are a part of something bigger, Khinashi? What then? This one does not want to take that risk. He will not put your family and friends in danger, and that is why he will be leaving tomorrow."

"What? No! You cannot leave, Dagi- you are injured. You do not need to leave anyway, you are safe here."

"Your Father makes a good healer, and those potions did well, but Dagi is safe nowhere, Khinashi, he knows that now. He is only a danger to those around him. Do not try to talk him out of it, and do not tell anyone else of this when he leaves. Do not put yourself in danger."

"But...We might be able-"

"Do not tell them, Khinashi, please. Do this for me if nothing else."

"Very well, this one will not tell them, she promises, but Khinashi must know- why tell her?"

"Because despite everything that happened today, for some strange reason, this one feels he can trust you. For your sake, and for your family's sakes he hopes he is right."

"Where will you go, then? Since you seem so set on leaving?"

"This one does not know - away from here. Do not try to follow him. He will perhaps seek out these assassins himself, for his Mother is not the only one skilled with a bow. He will try to learn what they are planning, learn what they are a part of if anything. Most of all: Why?"

"Then good luck, Dagi. May bright moons guide your path."

"And yours too, Khinashi. This one may have only known you for a day, and it may not have gotten off on the best start...but he would call you friend. Perhaps we may meet again in the future, if we do, hopefully it will be during better circumstances."

"The same to you, friend. Khinashi will hope for that day."

Khinashi smiles, but both happiness and sadness fills her heart. She is sad to see him leave, but he has his reasons. His quest. So much has changed about him in the minutes of that conversation. Before he was an injured Dagi boy, now he is something else- someone else, almost.

As she passes through the curtains, she remembers something and looks back one last time.

"So...You did hear Khinashi earlier when she thought you were asleep?"

Dagi laughs in response. "Yes, Khinashi, this one may still need a little more time to recover, but he is not deaf. You forget you are not the only one with 'big ears', no? But...yes, this one forgives you, you did not mean for it to happen. To me that is all that matters."

Khinashi gives a final smile in response and then walks down the hall and down the stairs, picking up a spare pillow and bedroll along the way to prepare to sleep.

As this one finds a spot and lays down to sleep, many thoughts pass through her mind, many questions.

Such a strange boy, that Dagi, to trust this one with his secrets, when she had nearly got him gravely injured, or worse. All today she had been bugging and pestering him with questions of his past, why did he decide to tell Khinashi after all? And now he is leaving tomorrow, when he has only just arrived today? Whatever his reasons for doing so – and whatever he sees in Khinashi to make her trustworthy – she will ensure that she does not break his trust. Khinashi will not break her promise, no matter what.

Even if it means that she must sit out and let Dagi head off on some exciting adventure without her...

To miss out on her one chance to be a part of a quest, that could potentially be very eventful...

One that would surely have many tales to be told about it, much more than simply staying in Torval, Khinashi is to continue her everyday life as normal...

...How did he convince this one to agree to this?


	4. Chapter 3: Bad Felines

**Chapter 3: Bad Felines**

This one rises up begrudgingly, with an arm at the back of her neck - She misses her bed already, for the hardwood floor of the living room did not make for a very comfortable night.

Khinashi slumps and aches from pain as she crosses the threshold of the house from the living room to the kitchen. The cacophony that fill her ears as she nears tells her without looking up that Mother must already be making breakfast. Khinashi sits down at one of the chairs and ungracefully rests her head on the table, hard enough that it startles both Mother and nearby aunt Jo'banja.

"Ma'nashi, you are awake, then? Why is it you were sleeping on the floor? You could have shared the bed with this one and your father. You must be aching sore from that, little cub."

Her words spoke true, she could have, and now she is sore. This one had not thought of that, but oh well.

"Too late for that." This one mumbled in a tone that did nothing to betray her mood.

"Oh, come now, you must not still be gloomy about what happened yesterday, are you?"

This one's only response was to shift her head so that her eyes met Mother's, before turning away again without a word. Is it not obvious enough that you have to ask?

"Hmm, this one is sure your mood will improve tomorrow then, yes? Did you forget already, Ma'nashi? Tomorrow is the Festival day, and this one knows they do not allow grumpy cubs to attend. You should get some practice on that so they will let you in."

"Oh yeah, the Festival..."

This one had nearly forgotten from all of yesterday's events. Mother still does not know of the magic show they will perform, and Paws and Ketra-

Wait.

The magic show...

Yesterday, when Khinashi told J'shabi that Mother agreed for them to go, Dagi asked about it...

He was intrigued by it, as if he had heard about it elsewhere, and when Khinashi told him, he was curious about the travelers we overheard from the Inn about the magic show.

Dagi said he had seen his father speaking to the assassins before he went missing, he called them travelers, too, but...Khinashi did not tell him what they looked like, because she was-

Sigh...Because she was still trying to get him to say something about what happened. He does not know. What if they were the same people? What if those travelers we had overheard in the Inn, were the same ones that killed Dagi's father, and tried to kill him?

The ones Dagi is looking for could be closer than he thinks, and will be here again tomorrow.

And if they are, then the magic show itself may not be-

No, it is not safe to jump to conclusions. Two Khajiit travelers are not uncommon anywhere in Elsweyr, they could easily be different people.

But Dagi seemed to have known about the magic show before-hand...Gah!

This one must make sure, just in case, before he leaves.

Khinashi startles her Mother and aunt once more as she tears herself away from the kitchen table, and runs up the stairs.

"Dagi!" she shouts, running through the curtains of her room, to find no one there.

"Dagi! Where are you?" She shouts again, looking through the other nearby rooms in her hall, where Ma'ketra and Ma'krin sleep, and then Jahirr's room, and Smallpaws... Each of them wake up in turn as she runs into their rooms, eyeing her with anger for the intruding wake up call.

Dagi is nowhere to be found.

"Dagi?" She says once more, desperately, as she walks into the final room, where J'shabi sleeps. No Dagi, not even J'shabi, are within.

"He's gone." A voice is heard from behind her, a familiar voice, yet once laced with silent anger and disappointment. Khinashi turns around to see J'shabi staring at her with her arms crossed, and when our eyes meet...Khinashi turns to the floor.

"So you mean, he has left, then?" Khinashi says in such a way as to sound both surprised and sad. The latter is easier to achieve because she is sad, but in truth, it is not surprising. He would have wanted to leave at night, when no one could try and stop him, it would be easier that way.

"Yes. He left a note in your room, Khinashi, you should read it."

Within the folds of her arms, said note appears as she hands it to her. Every action and sound displayed seems to only contribute more proof to the impending sense that J'shabi is not happy with Khinashi, but is trying hard to remain civil.

This one slowly takes the note from her and begins reading, although the contents are of little surprise. He would not have shared the true reason for his departure.

"To the House of Cats,

This one thanks you for your hospitality in allowing Dagi to stay with you, it means a lot to him to know there are people today who will give such a kindness. It saddens me to say however that this one cannot stay. It has been only a day, but Dagi remembered some important affairs to take care of that meant he would have to leave Torval. This one hopes that in the future he may be able to return to Torval, and, if possible, to the House of Cats. When or if that day will come, however, this one does not know.

Once again Dagi would like to thank you for our short time together, and he wishes you happiness and safety in the days to come.

\- Dagi"

Khinashi folds the parchment and passes it back to J'shabi.

"He was nice enough to leave out the real reason he left." J'shabi began.

"Wait, you mean you know, then?" Did Dagi, perhaps, tell her as well? Hope fills her that he has, for it means she must understand, and might have told him about the travelers.

"It's obvious it's because of what you did Khinashi, he didn't feel welcome here if you kept badgering him with questions about him. Tricking him into eat so much moon sugar so he would tell you? How could you think that was okay? He could have been-"

"No, you are right, but-"

"Save it, Khinashi, you know as well as I that's the reason. Just accept it, and learn from it. Don't worry, I won't tell your parents. Just know that because of you-"

"This one understands, but-"

J'shabi's eyes widen with anger, it seems her barriers are breaking down and she is speaking what she really feels now.

"No, that's just it, Khinashi, you don't! You don't understand! You don't understand what it's like to be without a family - without a place to call home! You never have! You never will...You've never had to worry about anything like that, you're just...blind to it all! It's not something people want to talk about, Khinashi, people want to leave that behind...They don't want to be demanded they tell everyone they meet about what happened to them like it's some tale you hear sung about in taverns!"

Those same eyes that were filled with anger moments ago are now being replaced with tears threatening to roll over, as J'shabi clutches the tooth held at her necklace. This one can tell what thoughts are running through her mind now.

"Shabi, no..."

"He was a good kid, Khinashi. He could have found a home here, a family. Like I did. Like I...think I have..."

The uncertainty in her voice, and her accusing gaze hurt more than anything else she could have done or said.

"Shabi...this one is so sorry, she did not mean-"

"For any of this to happen." J'shabi finished this one's sentence with a sigh as she turned away. It was an end to the conversation, and perhaps, in J'shabi's mind, more than that. There was nothing she could say that would improve the situation, at least, nothing Khinashi would be allowed to say. How much she wishes she could tell her of why Dagi truly left, perhaps then she would not be this way, but this one made a promise...

Without a word Khinashi trotted back down the stairs, and to the kitchen. It would be breakfast soon, she thought as she takes her seat. What would she do afterwards, though? Dagi has left, J'shabi clearly does not want anything to do with Khinashi now, and what of those travelers? What if they are the same people?

This one hears the meows of distant Alfiqs as they approach the curtains of our front door. A pair of brown Alfiqs, one with dark spots, and the other tabby, trod in slowly side by side. Mother goes to greet them.

"S'vari! S'renji! It is good to see you again! You are here to see your cubs yes? Ma'ketra is still ever-so full of energy, and Ma'krin is...still just as hungry, yes?"

The two cats nod, and one of them, the father – S'renji – mews in question with a paw raised, meaning he asks where they are.

"Ah, well, Ma'krin is...Oh, he is just over there, sleeping by the table, and as for Ma'ketra...Ma'ketra! Come on downstairs, your parents are here to see you!"

Within just a few seconds the sound of the stampeding Ma'ketra is heard across the house as her claws scratch at the wooden floor and she bumbles down the stairs. Ma'krin is still asleep, of course, for it would take more than Tatanja shouting to wake him up.

Mother leaves them to their reunion, as Ma'ketra drops to the floor to be on eye level with them. Her mother, S'vari purrs and nudges against her, the equivilant to a hug would be for them.

S'renji walks over to Ma'krin and tries to wake him up, by first mewing to no avail, and then scratching at his face. It takes him clawing behind his ears to finally break him from his dreams, as he growls annoyedly, and bears all of his teeth at the disturbance, to which S'renji only hisses back. Ma'krin instantly calms down at this, seemingly out of both fear and respect, and nudges him with his muzzle.

It is always nice to see them stop by now and then. They seem to visit once every couple months or more, when they can find time inbetween their jobs. What was it they do again? S'vari takes care of rodent infestations at plantations around Elsweyr, and S'renji? He writes, this one thinks, yes – he uses telikinesis to aid in journalism as he travels. This one always thought that was a strange profession for an Alfiq, but no one would never know one of his articles was written by someone without a speaking voice.

"You have arrived just in time for breakfast, come, take a seat on the table, you may stay – there will be enough for everyone, of that this one will make sure." Mother tells the two small parents.

As this one watches their reunion, she thinks upon what J'shabi said. Khinashi is the only one of this house to live with and see their parents every day.

Father never knew his, Mother and Jo'banja - along with Jahirr - left their parents and their tribe to live in Torval with Father. The Tygra tribe it is called, one of the few tribal Khajiit tribes of the Tenmar forest. This one is also a member of that tribe, or at least was honored into at birth, which her naming amulet proves – A wooden amulet she always wears, with the name 'Khinashi' carved into it. Smallpaws may or may not have known his parents, he has not yet been able to tell us of what brought him here, and he does not like to write – with one of the few exceptions being the name 'Smallpaws Sharpclaws' in ink on a large canvas when he arrived – alone - one day on our doorstep. He was old enough then to have found this place by himself, but where did he come from? And his name, it is a strange name for an Alfiq...Who would name their child that? Either way he has not seen his parents since, if he has ever.

Ma'krin and Ma'ketra only get to see their parents once every couple months, like today, and as for J'shabi...Ah, poor J'shabi. This one always shudders at the thought, knowing what happened to her parents.

J'shabi knew her parents, for some couple years when she was born – how long she does not know, and as such she does not know her age or birthday - for her parents were Pahmar, and she was born in the wilderness of Hammerfell, a strange place for four-legged Khajiit to be...Perhaps the wrong place. She says what she can remember of them was that they loved her and cared for her as best they could, but as they were Pahmar and she was Ohmes, it was difficult. Had she been born in or around Elsweyr, things might have been different. They could not teach her to walk, talk, or make her clothes, and they had no way of communicating to others that J'shabi was their daughter when a band of Redguard hunters came upon them...

They did not know of the Ja-kha'jay or its effects on Khajiit at birth, to them they saw a Bosmer child about to be eaten by a pair of what looked like strange tigers to them. They 'saved' her from these 'animals' and raised her as their own, oblivious to the fact that they had murdered her parents, oblivious to how they had scarred that child with terrible memories when she witnessed the events after that murder...The only thing left of them for her to remember them by is the tooth amulet she always wears about her neck. J'shabi did not know they were her parents, or that she was Khajiit, until she learned to speak and read – and to travel, but her heart knew even if her mind did not. That is why she always felt a connection to her amulet, and why she never has done certain things others do and feel no shame for, because her heart cannot bare it.

Sigh. J'shabi is right, this one does not know what that might be like, what any of those living with her might have gone through. Khinashi does not understand.

* * *

"Khinashi, Smallpaws! It's time for your training, meet me down below when you're ready, Jo'banja is already there preparing everything."

Father's shouting wrests this one from her mid-day nap. How long has Khinashi layed her head on her desk? It could be hours, judging by the numbness of this one's forehead and the stiffness in her legs.

So it is time for magic training again? This one had forgotten all about it, normally we do not train on Sundas, but yesterday he had other business to attend to and before that he was away at Dune. Perhaps it is just the right time, for this one needs something to take her mind off of things. Ma'ketra and Ma'krin will be spending the rest of the day with their parents, and J'shabi...ah no the temple would not be active today. Sigh. J'shabi would always attend this one's magic training sessions on days when the Two Moons Dance would be closed, to motivate her, but this one knows today will be an exception.

After a few moments of struggling to maintain balance as her legs sting and threaten to collapse, Khinashi makes her way through the curtains and down the stairs, and sees Smallpaws running along the railing ahead.

"This one hears you can levitate things now, Paws, do you think you are close to being able to project your voice into words yet?" Khinashi says as we make our way to the stairs in our quarter of the city.

His response is yet another attempt at the feat, which only comes out as a mix of a meow, a roar and a squeak. This one wonders if it will be a good or bad day when he finally perfects the spell and can use it to speak like Jo'banja can, though she does not do so much. He causes much trouble as it is without a voice. Khinashi wonders what mischief he would be capable with one - perhaps, eagerly so. Not many Alfiq ever become skilled enough to use it, but this one knows Paws will not let the chance escape him. Young though he is, he seems a natural at the art of magic.

Moreso than this one, anyway... Sometimes this one regrets being a Suthay, we are perhaps the least magically adept of our many forms, Suthays are meant to be sneaky and agile, the skills of a thief or assassin, but this one is neither. She does not want to be. Why would she? This one likes to sneak and jump and run, but for other purposes, and she has always been fascinated by the spells her father can cast. Spells to make things bright, spells to conjure atronachs, spells to heal people and hurl balls of fire! Father is a Cathay - their flat feet and thicker frame mean he would make a good warrior, and yet he is a mage, why should Khinashi not be able to be one as well?

"Nice of you to finally join us. This one hopes you remember what she taught you last time, Smallpaws, or did you forget again?" Jo'banja says as she strides toward us when we step off the last of the stairs.

"And Khinashi?"

"Yes, Jo'banja?" This one hesitantly says, she never has many nice things to say toward Khinashi. This one is glad she does not talk so often.

"Try not to set yourself on fire again, you smell bad enough without your fur smoldering. It took days of grooming to get the stench out."

"Thank you for caring, Jo'banja, it did not exactly feel very good being set ablaze..."

Truly that is an understatement. No physical pain can compare to being engulfed in flame, even now it still rings in her mind. This one thought she could control the Flame atronach...she had read the book many times. Lucky we had a large supply of water or that could have ended much worse.

"Are you here to complain or learn how to use magic? Magic is dangerous, Khinashi, if you are not able to control it, setting yourself on fire could be the least of your worries. Perhaps you would be better off learning something else?"

"No. This is what Khinashi wants to do and she will do it, burnt fur or not."

"It's good to see you're still eager as ever Khinashi, but lets try to avoid the burning part anyway, alright?" Father says, looking over at us as he sets down the last of the training materials. Jo'banja may not be friendly but it is good she is here to teach us, they both contrast eachother well between Jo'azha's encouragement and Jo'banja's criticism. This one will need both if she is ever to be able to use magic for anything other than party tricks.

The area we train at is now properly set up in the clearing. A few dummy targets, a trough of water, and some buckets nearby in case of fire hazards, a few young wild Alits within a pen, and a few magically enchanted objects, among other things. The clearing is short distance away from our quarter's tower and support trees, away from the stone roads, far enough away from trees that nothing bad can happen. Why there is a clearing here at all this one does not know, for usually trees surround all of the stone roads, save for where the bridges are and where houses jut out further. Perhaps there was once a house above this area and no trees have grown since its removal.

"Shall we begin?" Father asks, looking at this one and Smallpaws in turn. We both nod back.

* * *

"Yes! This one did it, right? That was an ice spike?"

"Hmm, it was, Khinashi...but it's not supposed to shatter upon contact so easily, that was supposed to go through the straw dummy, try focusing more so it's more solid, and charge it up longer before releasing it." Father explains.

"Okay."

This one focuses on the ice, letting it resonate between her fingertips for a few seconds this time, before releasing her hold and sending out the spike! Except...It did not release.

"This one cannot feel her hands."

"Come on Khinashi, this is no time for cold feet." Jo'banja jokes at Khinashi's expense.

"This one said hands!"

* * *

"Smallpaws...You have calmed the Alits, that much is clear. They are not your playmates though and they will not be very happy about your pushing them around when the spell wears off. You should get out of the pen before-"

A very loud yowl cuts Jo'banja's sentence off.

"Agh, Khinashi! Ow! You weren't supposed to aim the magelight at my eyes!"

"Is it not supposed to hover around you, not stick on you father?"

"You're right, that wasn't supposed to happen either, perhaps you should read the book again."

"Do not worry, the light should fade after awhile father, yes?"

"That's what I'm worried about."

* * *

"Familiars are much easier to control than atronachs, Khinashi, just focus on maintaining a mental link with it and don't let yourself get distracted."

"Okay, so lets see then, this one just has to-"

Khinashi twists her hands and focuses on the words of binding the conjuration book had told her, and suddenly a blue, spirit-like animal appears in front of her.

"Yay, this one did it!"

"Good, now command it to do something and see if it listens. You don't have to say it, you retain a telepathic connection with it – and don't get distracted, or it'll do what it wants!"

"Alright!"

So what should Khinashi tell it to do, hmm? What is this animal, anyway? It has four legs, a muzzle like us, but...It does not look like any creature she has seen before, it sticks its tongue out as it breathes with its mouth open. It is strangely terrifying, almost. Where has she heard of such a creature before?

"Khinashi?"

Ah yes, there was a book she had read long ago about such creatures, they are not from Elsweyr, they mostly roam in the northern lands and some people keep them as pets, and they have a mysterious habit of-

"Khinashi!" Father's voice breaks her from her thoughts and she realizes the familiar is no longer in front of her.

Smallpaws yowls and hisses as he sprints away while the familiar barks and chases after him.

* * *

"Very good, Smallpaws, invisibility is a very useful spell, and easier to learn for Alfiq such as us. As you get better at it you will be able to remain invisible for much longer, and eventually even maintain it for other beings. Focus on what the senses perceive, and you can manipulate them to your advantage. Just remember only to use it with good intentions...Smallpaws? You are listening, yes? Smallpaws?"

* * *

The cold water tingles her whiskers as Khinashi wades her head through the water trough, but she does not let it distract her. Remember, Khinashi...Reality is not real, it is a falsehood. The sky is red, the grass is blue. There are fish swimming around her – she can see them, little, tiny fish, those are not bubbles. It is not a water trough she is in but the ocean, she is out at sea on a boat. The water she is breathing is not water, it is air.

But suddenly, without warning, even though she distracts herself with impossibilities made possible, water fills her lungs, and her father pull her out from the trough as she chokes the cold water out.

"What happened, father? This one did as you said – it was easy, she just did not have to think about what she was actually doing, and think of everything as possible."

"You did a great job with the spell Khinashi, but perhaps too good. You were able to breathe water for several minutes, you clearly understand how it works."

"Too good? What made it stop, then? And why does this one suddenly have a headache?"

"Well, as you know, everyone has a reserve of magicka within them, that they use to make spells work. When you train and get better at it you build up more, and some races naturally learn this faster and quicker. You did the spell perfectly, but, you just 'ran out' of magicka. It could be a half hour before you're ready to continue."

"Really? But so quick? We did not even do that many things...If she can only cast a few spells every hour, what good is that? How would this one ever be able to use them to defend herself if she were to have to fight or use them to survive?"

Father knelt down and placed a hand on this one's shoulder, as he always does when he is about to say something important, something he does not want Khinashi to forget.

"Khinashi, there are other ways to survive and defend yourself than by blade, arrow, or spell. Use your wit, your cunning and imagination as your foremost defence, for that will be the most important factor that will see you through. Not how sharp your blade is, how much you have trained, or how many spells you can cast. Remember that, your spells are not your only weapon."

"Of course not, father, claws are useful too, no?"

"Other than that, too, Khinashi." Father laughs, and rises back to his feet. He walks over to a chest that had been on the ground and takes something out of it. It seems to be a set of clothes and a wooden pole, why would he bring that?

"But while your wits are most important, it still helps to be able to use more spells from time to time too, right? Here, Khinashi. I was going to give this to you yesterday, but..."

This one did not let him finish, she did not want to talk about it.

"So what is this? A set of clothes and a stick? This one already has plenty of clothes, father, but thanks-"

"Hah, more than just a stick, that's a magical staff, and those aren't ordinary clothes Khinashi, unfold them - Can you notice anything different about them?"

A magical staff, hmm? What is magical about it? And for the clothes...This one takes a long look at them. Well, they are yellow and orange, Khinashi's favorite colours...They do not look like the standard clothes a Tenmar Khajiit would wear, more like a tunic, or perhaps a robe. Though, it does have a hood, and a belt to keep it tight. They do not smell very good, as if they are old and dusty, and the feeling of them is strange - cold to the touch, and not a fabric like what you would expect it to be made of. There are trousers to match, but these appear to have been cut so that they would fit someone of her size and the shape of her feet.

"Well, they are certainly very different from Khinashi's other clothes. Old, dusty, and cold – why are they cold?"

"They're enchanted, Khinashi, that's what that cold feeling is – they've been enchanted to allow the wearer to regain magicka quicker and have more to use in the first place. If you wear them, you should find you'll be able to cast many more spells, and you won't have to wait as long to use them again. They're powerful enough, that for you, they should allow you to do about three times as much as your normally would, and wait half as long."

This one's uncertainty turns to happiness at his, so they are magical robes then, like what father wears!

"Wow, thanks! So did you enchant them yourself?"

Father's smile wavers some when she says this.

"No. I don't do that anymore, Khinashi. I told you long ago of the robes I enchanted when I was younger, before you were born - your mother crafted them, but, to this day I have never worn them, and I said I would never enchant anything again after it."

Ah yes, this one does remember. She still does not yet understand why he stopped or why he never wore them, however. On one of his adventures he needed every advantage he could get to overcome the challenge he was presented with, which is why he had made them in the first place. He does not say much about what that quest was, only that the cost of what went into enchanting those robes did not warrant what he needed them for. He had 'crossed the line' he said, but did not destroy them, in case there ever were a time when they would be needed. What Khinashi would do for the chance to wear those robes...But no, they are not hers, and her father would have a good reason for not wanting to wear them, of that this one is sure.

"Right...Yeah, Khinashi remembers. So you bought them from Dune, then?"

"Yes, there was a travelling merchant there when I arrived. They were not made in Elsweyr, Khinashi, but from the far away land of Skyrim. They're robes that were once worn by one of the students of the College of Winterhold. Hmm, with some adjustments, of course, so that they would fit you."

"Yes, this one can see that...Why do mages always have to wear such silly robes?"

"To answer that question would be like explaining how magic works in the first place, Khinashi. It is not ours to know. Still, you should find you can move just as easily in them, they were not made like the standard in Cyrodiil - be glad of that."

"And so what about this staff then, it is magical? What does it do?"

"You can cast fireballs with it that will hopefully be more stable than your Ice Spike was earlier. They won't require any magicka, as it all comes from the enchantment of the staff...Uh, don't test it out just now."

Hmm, this sounds very useful...Khinashi rubs the staff and feels the energies surround it. She can see where she could place straps on it to carry on her back.

"Thanks Father, this one will be sure to put these to good use!"

Khinashi jumps forward and hugs father tightly, until the sound of Jo'banja hissing, and people approaching on the stone road, brings her attention elsewhere. It is the Mane's Speaker, Ra-Zara'chi, and his son Dar'Zhar-do. Zara'chi may not have been chosen to be the mane himself but he is still a lunar champion, and his size has always made him all the more scary-looking. The size of a Cathay-raht but with the feet of a Suthay, and fur as long as a Senche. He would have a large mane about his head too, were he not forced to shave it off.

"Ah, Jo'azha, Khinashi, how nice it is to see you."

"Zara'chi." Father nods and responds, with noticeable apprehension.

"You will address this one with his proper title, Jo'azha, it is 'Ra-Zara'chi', for this one has earned his position of state."

"Whatever makes you feel better." Father replies calmly.

Zara'chi growls, and looks over us both with hardly disguised disgust. When his eyes meet Khinashi's, she steps behind her father to hide. This one does not like him one bit. Dar'Zhar-do stands proudly next to his father with his arms crossed, and a wide grin on his face. He is nothing but his father's lapcat now when he is around, wanting to be praised by him, to tell him he is a good son. This one always wonders what changed to make him as such. He never used to care what his father thought of him a few years ago, back then he really was a rebel, but now he just pretends to be one.

"So this one heard you had a runaway today. Only one day was it, that he lasted? He must have seen sense early on, and saw how poor your orphanage really is, Jo'azha. Ra-Zara'chi does not know why his brother nor the Clan Mother waste our taxes continuing to fund this place, if your orphans are finding it so bad they would rather live on the streets."

Hearing him talk of Dagi made this one angry, he did not know the truth, he did not leave because of that!

"He did not-!" This one shouted, but was cut off by father.

"It was his choice, Ra-Zara'chi. We don't hold them hostage, they're free to leave if they wish. Besides, he had remembered affairs that needed attention elsewhere."

"And he made the right choice, Jo'azha. You could learn from him when making your own."

"Still bitter about that then, I see."

Ra-Zara'chi's eyes narrowed as he gave a dark stare at Father, who calmly gazed back. He was not afraid of him.

"All of our problems we face now are because of you, Jo'azha, do not forget that! This one would have never let-"

"Father!" To everyone's surprise, it was Dar'Zhar-do who interrupted his father's ranting. Ra-Zara'chi looked confused and annoyed, as he turned to face his son.

"What is it?" He demands.

"Let us not rehearse this once more, that much is already clear, yes? Besides, perhaps it is not so bad after all, you would have never had this one as a son, or met Mother if you were Mane, no?" Dar'Zhar-do makes a quick glance to Khinashi before looking at his father expectantly. Why did he say this? That was what this one had told him yesterday...

Ra'Zara-chi's face was difficult to read, he seemed more annoyed that he was interrupted than thoughtful of what his son said, but it did make him stop to think. He turns around, without answering, and speaks to this one's Father again instead. As he does, Khinashi notices there was a look of sadness in Dar'Zhar-do, but only for a split second.

"Anyway, this one did not walk all the way here for idle chit-chat. For some reason, the 'Mane' requests to speak to you at his palace."

Father's face twitches with surprise at this. Why is he surprised, are he and the Mane not good friends? He has been to visit him before. Before father can respond, Zara'chi continues.

"He would not tell Ra-Zara'chi why, but he claims it is important, and that you should do so immediately."

"Understood, thanks for bringing me the-"

"You will tell this one, Jo'azha, what might he want to speak to you about, if he would not tell his own brother?"

Father looks struck by the question, as if he needs to find some way out of it. After a few moments of thought, father smiles and looks up at him.

"Oh, don't you see, Ra-Zara'chi? It's not that it's too important to tell you, but not enough – he wouldn't want to waste your time talking about the weather, now would he? You're far too busy with your duties as speaker for idle gossip – but thank you for telling me, I will go to see him."

"Yes, you are right...He concerns himself with pointless matters daily, perhaps that is all it is. Very well. Come, Dar'Zhar-do, let us leave these peasants."

Ra-Zara'chi tugged at Dar'Zhar-do's shoulder and they walked away, back up the stairs to the city proper. The look in Ra-Zara'chi's eyes were filled with suspicion as he looked at father one last time, he did not buy his glib response...and neither did this one.

"So what are you really going to talk to the Mane about, Father?"

"I'm not actually sure, Khinashi. I mean, I have a few guesses, but..." Father says uneasily.

"What is it, Father? What do you think it is then?"

"Nothing, Khinashi, it's nothing."

"Would the Mane request to speak with you about nothing, though?"

There was a long pause, and the look in Father's face seemed as if he were trying to answer a question of his own. He shook himself from his thoughts.

"Don't worry about it, Khinashi. The Mane and I have been friends for a long time, he might just want to ask about how the House has been lately."

"But if it's not-"

"We'll see, Khinashi. We were about finished with the magic training for today anyway, you should head back inside, your Mother's probably already making dinner. I'm afraid I might be late for it tonight."

This one was about to say something else but it was clear he would not tell her. He scratched this one's ears and said not to worry, and walked off toward the Mane's palace.

Jo'banja wasted no moment climbing back up the stairs to return home, but Smallpaws sat beside this one as we watched Jo'azha disappear into the distance.

This one had a strange feeling in her stomach, but it was not a hungry feeling, a different one.

Something about the way Father acted made him seem as if he had suspicions about something lately, and hearing the Mane wanted to speak to him confirmed them.

Father had been at Dune, perhaps he did learn more about what happened to Dagi's father, and maybe his suspicions are in relation to this. This one could not go with Dagi, she was not able to tell him about the travelers, or anyone what he said, and she is not allowed to follow him, but if it is related...Well, Khinashi never promised she would not stop herself from learning anything now, did she? If Dagi does come back, maybe the meeting would reveal something that would help him – it is the least she can do from her position.

Perhaps it is time for this one to pay a visit to the Mane's Palace then, after so long. It would be risky, and if she were caught she would surely be in trouble, but...This is worth the risk, no?

"Smallpaws...Do you think you could help Khinashi with something?"

The small Alfiq looked up to Khinashi and tilted his head to the side in a questioning manner.

"This one thinks she should hear what the Mane and Father will be talking about. Khinashi cannot say why, but she has a feeling it could be important for her to know. Could you help me sneak into the Palace courtyard? If Khinashi could get by one of the windows to the room where they will be, maybe it will be close enough."

There was a mischievous look in his eyes and a smile widened on his face as he nodded. Of course he would want to help with this. It is something he would probably do any day. It is probably something this one would have done anyways too, before today...But for the wrong reasons.

"All right then, lets hurry, before Jo'banja notices we did not follow her inside and comes to look for us."

* * *

The sun was already giving off the last of its rays of light as we approached the hill the Mane's palace sat upon. The dwindling orange fading to blue behind the dome roofs of the palace gave it a divine glow as it made its descent beyond the horizon. It was exciting to know that soon we would be able to see the walls close up again. This one used to know every nook and cranny there was to find about the palace courtyard.

Smallpaws hisses and scratches Khinashi's feet, telling this one to stop standing around.

Khinashi nods and crouches to sneak through the grass up the hills. We could not dare take the main path to the palace, there would be too many guards posted about. That was the way her father would have taken to get there, and also where Jo'banja would look for us on if she figured out where we were going. No, we would have to crawl – perhaps climb would be more accurate – through this densely grassy area, full of sharp twigs, bugs and insects, and other things to make this one wish Suthays could wear shoes. These hills surround all outer parts of the city that make up the valley we live in, which contributes to how high the water level would reach here, despite how close we are to the Xylo river to the west and the Padomaic Ocean to the south. The palace itself sits on an edge that overhangs the Xylo, the walls extending so far that in some spots you could jump from the furthest window and land in the waters below...but it would be quite a fall.

As we near the top of the climb, we make out the roof of the temple of the Two Moons Dance, and the fire near the entrance to show that it is- wait...but it is closed today. That is not a candle, it is someone holding a torch!

This one grabs Smallpaws before he walks out of the grass and holds him down, whilst this one herself uses the grass to cover herself more. Through the reeds she can see two people, the one holding the torch is no doubt Master Do'Hasrandru. The other – whilst she cannot see him fully as he is standing near the doorway to the temple - is most likely his Nord assistant Tolgun, judging by the thick boots she can see he is wearing - too thick for Khajiit feet.

"Come on Hasran, what's this all about? You've been acting strangely lately and now the Mane wants to talk to you about something? I know you're hiding something, and probably for good reason too, but you can trust me – we've known eachother for decades!"

"This one is sorry, Tolgun, he has promised the Mane not to tell anyone of this, it would cause a panic. To cause a panic without enough proof that his suspicions are correct, would be...unwise. If it is true, there are dark forces at work, and they do not work in the light. It is most likely a false alarm, anyhow. It would not be the first time."

"What? You act like you already know what the Mane's going to say, what's he said to you, Hasran? What's this about 'dark forces'?"

"Ah, Hasrandru apologizes...It may not be that. It is something the Mane has told me of long ago, something that he saw when he walked the path to become the Mane. Do not worry, Tolgun, if it is this that which he speaks of, you will be the first Hasrandru will tell."

"And if it is...?"

"Then you must be ready to fight."

With that, Master Do'hasrandru turns and makes his way to the palace. Tolgun watches him leave, and turns his head- he almost notices us in the bushes, he stares for a few seconds, did he find us? Please no.

He steps inside, shaking his head. Yes. He must have just thought we were bugs or other critters about in the grass.

This one let out a breath of air she did not realize she was holding, and both Smallpaws and Khinashi turn our heads, looking at eachother with wide eyes, for we both heard what they were talking about...

Khinashi was right, this is something important, the Mane is worried about something, and Master Do'hasrandru thinks it could be related to something he learned when he walked the path – but what could that be? If it is, then Father must know as well, for the Moon Hallowed always guides the Mane on the Two Moons Path at Dune, it is the final trial to become the Mane. They say they are transported to the moons themselves and see a vision of some sort, a difficult trial they must overcome or prevent. Each Mane sees the path differently, but it is usually a trial of the present, not the future, or so this one thought.

There has to be more to it than that, Tolgun was right, Master Do'Hasrandru was hiding something, and so was Father. They will be talking about it at their meeting of course, who else was invited? Why was Ra-Zara'chi not allowed to attend?

This one decides she will not learn the answers to these questions lying around, and quickly jumps to her feet and sneaks about the back of the temple, with Smallpaws close behind.

As we reach the other side, we can see the Moon Sugar gardens surrounding the palace, and beyond that the walls and windows – that is her destination, but...Gah! There are too many guards about. Most are too far away to be any trouble, but one in particular stands directly between the line from the temple to the gardens. We would have little chance getting past him undetected, at least he is only an Imperial and not a Khajiit, else there would be no chance – he would hear us as we approach.

If only we could make him leave his post...

Hmm...

If this one has learned anything about humans from their district in the east, it is that they value coin above all else. Like those Khajiit yesterday whom could not ignore the moon sugar sweets as they spilled across the marketplace, perhaps this guard could not ignore a bag of gold spilled about? He would collect every septim, of that this one is sure.

But where to find such things? Khinashi has had no need for it, and Smallpaws clearly does not have any...

The sound of a fire being lit, soon followed by the aroma of a very tasty stew being cooked fills Khinashi's ears and nose. Tolgun must be making his own dinner now, this one sometimes forgets that they live at the temple in closed off sections away from the training areas. The window next to them must be to their living quarters.

Smallpaws licks his lips and jumps up to the window frame, what is he doing? He will get us caught!

This one stands up to grab him down, but too late- he has already jumped into the room. We are lucky Tolgun is busy searching for more ingredients to use in his shelves. Upon looking inside the window she has a look of the area more closely. It is a small room, and very untidy. Many bookcases line the inner walls, with books clumsily thrown in, and some strewn about the floor along with clothes.

Beyond that, the stew pot and fireplace itself which Tolgun cooks at, nearby the window she is looking in. A small bed, and- wait, on a desk nearby his bed is a large bag of gold! We could use that!

This one signals to Smallpaws to grab the bag, it takes some seconds before he notices – for he was busy biting pieces of food already in the stew pot for himself – but eventually he does. He understands, hopefully, what Khinashi meant when she pointed at the bag and signaled to pick it up...

Tolgun silently curses to himself as he opens more shelves forcefully. This one wonders what ingredient he is looking for that he apparently cannot find.

Smallpaws makes his way over to the desk, and suddenly Tolgun stops searching and turns around. Khinashi ducks before she is seen, but what of Smallpaws? He was standing right in the room!

A few seconds pass, and at the absence of Tolgun yelling, but with him continuing to search, tells this one that somehow Paws was not caught. She looks back up and sees him sneaking out from beneath a bundle of clothes. Lucky for us that Tolgun is a messy person.

Paws picks up the heavy bag with his mouth – noticeably with some struggle, and brings it over to the window, and...What! Smallpaws, no!

This one waves her arms wildly mouthing these words as he lifts up the bag and pours bits of the gold coins into the cooking pot. He does not see her, but they are close enough now that Khinashi sticks her arms into the room and picks both the bag and Smallpaws and brings them out of the window.

As she does, she hears a sigh of success and the sound of Tolgun kissing something as she ducks down beyond the window.

"There you are, my love. I was looking all over for you, you know?"

What? Does Tolgun have a wife then? Khinashi has never seen her...

"No meal is perfect without you being a part of it."

So he has invited her for dinner then, perhaps, or at least Khinashi hopes, for the alternative meaning to that would be-

A sound interrupts her thoughts as a liquid is being poured and stirred into the stew.

"Nothing like a bottle of Mead to spice up anything..."

Ah, so that is the ingredient he was looking for...Wait, he is adding Mead to his stew? And was that what he was talking to – kissing a bottle of mead?

Erm, perhaps this is something Khinashi could have lived without knowing about J'shabi's martial arts instructor...

The two cats walk a short distance away from the window as Khinashi informs Paws of the plan. This one felt bad for stealing Tolgun's gold – perhaps, hopefully after the event the guard will realize it belongs to him when the raging Nord knocks on their doors, but for now, there are more important things at hand. Khinashi must know what the Mane worries about.

Smallpaws uses his invisibility to get past the guard with the gold unnoticed, and spills the bag all over the palace plaza tiling, close enough that the guard will hear it and see it, but not before giving Smallpaws chance enough to evade detection after the fact.

And it worked! Within seconds the guards small ears heard the commotion and Paws was already running back to Khinashi. The guard ran as fast as his legs would permit and he was picking up the gold like a beggar getting enough money for tomorrow's dinner – they must not pay the guards that much...

What is more, strangely, the other guards also noticed and are joining him in this pursuit. This one did not intend for that. In any case, with the guard distracted, Khinashi and Smallpaws make their way casually to the moon sugar fields, and around the walls away from sight from the guards when and if they return from their unexpected early payroll.

In case they do perhaps realize it is a distraction and look for the intruders, Khinashi has Smallpaws stay behind to be able to notify her before any guards come from that direction. It is safer this way, only one of us needs to hear the meeting, preferably the one who can speak and does not mind writing.

Khinashi peeks her head through the window and can see them all, standing about next to the Mane's large throne. Father, Master Do'hasrandru, and Clan Mother Zalani, all stand next to the large figure that is the Mane. This one has never seen the Mane before without him wearing his ceremonial headdress, he looks much smaller without it, identical to Ra-Zara'chi save the Mane. To think, having to wear the braids made from locks of hair from every Khajiit in his tribe...It is no wonder he does not wear it always, for he cannot even move by himself during public appearances, and has to be carried by a palanquin held up by four strong Cathay-raht males. Still, his own mane protruding from all parts of his head make it doubtless from who he is. There is a reason the Manes are known as the Manes.

This one is not sure how long they have been talking already, but she can hear now Zalani's voice above the others.

"...This one does not see why we delay. The signs are clear, Rid-Rawl'vah, and there is only one person whom could even do such a thing. He has the motive, too, you know, we could just-"

"No! This one does not believe it, cannot believe it. How could he even be able to do that? Even if he could, he would not do such a thing, not when it meant his own-" The mane rebukes.

"Unfortunately, this one must agree with Zalani. There is too much at stake to remain still about this. Your vision spoke clearly of the events leading up to this now – the festival is tomorrow, a strangely coloured boy arrives, and the theft itself at Dune..." Master Do'hasrandru interrupts.

"Actually, nothing was taken at the Temple of the Two Moons path, I investigated that myself." Father responds.

"Do not kid yourself... There was nothing to take, Jo'azha, you know that! No thief would have reason to steal from there, there is only one reason to enter that temple, and only one person who could make use of that reason!"

"And what of the Moon Priest who died? What did you learn about that?"

"I admit, it did seem a bit too convenient that he died in the wilderness, priests often don't have reason to go that far – and never alone."

"And that was it, you learned nothing else?"

"Well...I think it's possible the boy could have been the priest's son. He wouldn't say, but I did notice some similarities. It wasn't right to press any further, he was in shock."

"What do you mean it was not 'right' Jo'azha? The boy might know more about how he died – who killed him, why they did, some sort of lead! Something to prove our suspicions - Since you all seem unconvinced as it is! Do you not care about the safety of our land, about the safety of the Mane?"

"Enough, Zalani! This one does not doubt Jo'azha's faith to our cause. He has proven himself many times over. The boy may not have known anything, he may not have even been his son. It may all be completely unrelated anyhow. The vision may have been referring to something else, too."

"Forgive this one, Rid-Rawl'vah, but you are fooling no one. You would not have called us here if you did not think it is happening. You know it is more than mere coincidence. Regardless, we have noticed too late. The boy is gone now and we are none the wiser. He was our one lead to an answer for this and we have missed it."

"We could send some Khajiit to look for him...He could not have gone far."

"No. Leave him be. We can't let anyone else know of this anyway, if the events are connected, and the Mane's vision was telling of this time, then he's safer away from here."

"And why should no one else know of this? Why are we speaking in the dark about something that could effect us all if we cannot stop it? Everyone should know, so as to be on alert."

"It would cause a panic, Zalani. What if we are wrong? What if we are right – and he has allies from within? It would only expiate the inevitable."

"Do'hasrandru is right, Zalani. It's safer for everyone if this remains secret. If we're wrong, then there's nothing to worry about. If we're right...Then we'll be able to protect the Mane easier without them knowing."

What is this one hearing? The vision they speak of seems to have included Dagi, and what happened at Dune. What are they afraid that will happen that could effect everyone? Who is it that Clan Mother Zalani is so sure is behind it? What is this about protecting the Mane?

"By Rahjin's whiskers, so it is true - that was you he saw sneaking around the palace grounds! You could use a little work, though, this one had to knock out a guard from the other side..."

What? That was not someone inside the palace! She recognizes that voice...

Khinashi turns her head away from the window, and sees a Suthay-raht boy wearing dark clothes leaning against the wall beside her.

"Dar'Zhar-do! What are you-!"

"Shh! Do you want them all to hear us? Quiet down girl!" Zhar whispers, clasping his hand over Khinashi's mouth before she could say anything else. Slowly he removes it, and this one stares into his eyes with curiosity, suspicion, anger, and confusion mixed about from her own.

"What are you doing here?" This one whispers.

"This one could say the same to you, La'nashi. Do you not know? Curiosity is what kills the Khajiit."

"For the last time, it is Khinashi! And this one has her reasons...She wanted to know what her Father was talking about. It seemed important. Now what are yours?" Khinashi says, full of apprehension and annoyance.

"This one does not care for petty politics so much per-say, but Father was also curious to know what would be said, so he sent this one to learn of it."

"What for? Why does Ra-Zara'chi want to know?"

"Hmph, you think he would tell this one? You know Dar'Zhar-do's father, he does not tell this one anything...He just demands."

Khinashi is not sure she believes his words, but the look on his face betrays his usual arrogance, it is the look similar to what she had seen earlier today from him. One similar to what he was like long ago, before he became the entitled, arrogant child he is now. Back when we were friends. His father did not like us hanging out together, but back then he did not listen to his father.

"Dar'Zhar-do, what happened to change you? You never were so uncaring, rude and arrogant. You never used to worry about what your father thought of you, we used to be friends."

The question seemed to take him by surprise, but he devolved back into his usual arrogant attitude. Perhaps it was just a fluke.

"What happened, La'nashi? This one grew up, and you should too! You hang around that Elf like a moth to a flame. You have changed too, far more than Dar'Zhar-do has, even though you do not see it. She has changed you."

Hmm, he never had been so hateful of Ohmes either, it was not until J'shabi came that he began to shortly afterwards.

"Why do you dislike Ohmes so much now anyway? You did not show such hatred to Ma'han or Ashaji once, only after J'shabi came here – and it is to her you show the worst."

"It is different, they were born here. She was not. It is as simple as that. Now can we stop this nonsense and do what we came here for?"

This one did not believe his words, and she would not let him evade this topic. There was a deeper reason for it and Khinashi would know it.

"It is not because she is an Ohmes at all, or from where she is born, is it? It is something else."

The sound of a cat hissing and the meeting inside the palace did not avert her attention. Dar'Zhar-do tried to pretend he did not hear Khinashi, but this one knew better.

"Do not act like you did not hear this one, tell Khinashi! What is it! What made you change? Why do you hate J'shabi?"

Dar'Zhar-do finally gave up and turned his head, but as he did his ears flipped to the side and an expression of fear wore over his face. Did this one really look so scary that he, of all people, would act like a little kitten? This was quite humorous...

The joke was over when this one felt herself being hauled up by the neck of her tunic from behind, hanging from the air held by the arm of one of the guards.

"Well well, look what we have here, a couple of cats caught eavesdropping around the palace at night. You were the one who threw that gold weren't you? Thanks for the tip, but I'm afraid my bribes take a bit more than that. You two will be taking a nice trip down to the jailhouse with me as we have a little chat about this incident."

"Uh, surely this is just a misunderstanding... We were not eavesdropping, merely...uh, making out, yes? We had to find some hiding place far away-"

This one kicks Dar'Zhar-do in the chest before he could continue.

"We were eavesdropping."


	5. Chapter 4: Purr of the Moment (P1)

**Chapter 4: Purr of the Moment (Part 1)**

"By the twin moons, Ma'nashi, what were you thinking? Stealing gold from Tolgun Wide-Hand? Trespassing in the Mane's courtyard last night? How could you even...Have you learned nothing from this one? Have you been listening at all to us, your parents, during your fourteen years on Nirni? Are you even listening to this one now? Ma'nashi!"

"This one is listening, Mother."

"But are you paying attention? Look at this one when she is talking!"

Khinashi rises her head from the table and glances around her. The entire household assembly all sit around her at the breakfast table, all wearing varying levels of disappointment on their faces. The exceptions were Smallpaws, for he knows had he not slipped away unseen these words would be said to him as well, and Ma'krin for...obvious reasons.

This one forces herself to look at Mother's sternful eyes as she requested. Holding her gaze is a difficult task, for the guilt of knowing the truth of her crime and the regret of promising silence weighs on her like a Senche-Raht standing on her back. Right now, this one would wish for nothing more than to crawl under the covers of her bed and just be alone, especially after having spent the night in a cold cell of the Torval jail. Never before had Khinashi ever been so afraid of the sound of rain...Everyone knew the stories - that once a long time ago, a flash flood happened over night, starting the high water season earlier than usual, and the inmates that were trapped inside for months all died a painful, starving death, except the one who ate the other's corpses to survive...

"Stop wasting your time, Tatanja, you know she will just run off and do something similarly stupid anyway. She does not care for what you have to say." Jo'banja hisses out the words as she circles the floor.

This one could not take such an insult and reached out to step on her tail. She screeched and lashed out with her claws and teeth at Khinashi's leg, forcing this one to have to stand up and shake her off.

"Ma'nashi! Jo'banja!"

Jo'banja releases her grip and jumps on the table, and Khinashi looks away and sits down again. The Alfiq-raht licks out the ruffles in her fur.

"You only prove this one's words, Khinashi. You are lucky you only had to stay a single night in that jail, you would have not gotten off so easily were this one in charge."

As a final taunt she smacks her tail in Khinashi's face, making her have to spit out fur that got caught in Khinashi's mouth as she jumps back down to the floor. This one extends her claws and bares her teeth at Jo'banja to look menacing.

"Both of you just stop! You are not helping, sister, and Ma'nashi, you will stop this nonsense here and now! You will not take what does not belong to you, and you will not go where you are not meant to be, or you will not set foot out of this house until you learn otherwise, do you understand?"

"This one understands, Mother." Khinashi says while retracting her claws in defeat.

"Good. Then you are ready to help Clan Mother Zalani at the Moon Sugar plantation today."

This one's ears twitched in confusion as to what they heard.

"What? But today is the-"

"Today the Festival of the Third Moon will be taking place, yes Ma'nashi, but you will not be attending it."

The words rang in Khinashi's mind like drums against her head. No, this one must go, she has to, the magic show that will not be a magic show- the meeting- the mane- the travelers! Something will happen, this one knows it, and she must go! Khinashi must convince Mother to let her go.

"But you said this one could-!"

"This one said you could if you had stayed out of trouble until then. You did not heed those words, and so...Tatanja is sorry, little cub, but...you cannot go."

"But-!"

"Listen to your Mother, Khinashi, we only mean the best for you." Father interrupts. He must know why Khinashi has to go to the festival, he was at the meeting!

"Father, you know! You were there! You know about-"

"Yes Khinashi, I know about the troubadour and his travelling band that will be performing and how much you wanted to hear them. You should still be able to hear them from the plantation, don't worry."

Father's words confuse this one for a moment, Khinashi was not talking about the troubadour and he knows it, but the look in his eyes explains the rest. So he is keeping it secret from everyone then, and he knows Khinashi overheard them. So he expects nothing will happen then?

"Ma'nashi, this matter is not open for further discussion, the only way you can learn from this is through discipline. Jahirr will watch over you and Ma'krin at the plantation and show you what to do. If you are lucky and Zalani is in a good mood she may let you have some sugar sweets while you work."

This one was about to say that Zalani is never in a good mood, but from the tilt of Mother's head and expression this one could tell she was expecting a response like that.

"Yes Mother..." This one said with a sigh of defeat.

Mother smiled knowing that the argument was over, but her eyes showed sadness at her words, and are filled with regret. Mother looked as if she felt her punishment was too harsh.

As the assembly at the breakfast table began to disperse and depart, a thought came to this one... Khinashi knew Mother did not enjoy having to punish people like Zalani or Jo'banja might, and when she does, often times she is very lenient in what her punishment is. Khinashi had once accidentally broken an expensive vase that was a gift to her from Zalani, and Zalani was quick to insist that Khinashi work to pay to replace it, but then...Mother convinced Zalani that she herself was to blame for why it broke, because she knew Zalani would be easier on her. She did this despite having seen Khinashi as the one who knocked it over with her own eyes, the worst Khinashi got out of it was needing to clean the house and cook the meals for a few days.

Mother would not have been the one to suggest Khinashi should not go to the festival, she knew how much this one wanted to go – even if she did not know the present reasons now.

That can only mean that Father was the one to suggest Khinashi should not go, but he is even more understanding and easy-going than Mother.

So the only reason he would do that, is if he does expect something bad will happen, and he wants Khinashi to stay away from it!

Khinashi looked around and saw Father leaving through the door in a quickened pace. A glance throughout the kitchen revealed Jahirr was still finishing up some of his breakfast and would still need to wake Ma'krin up, it would be a few moments before he came to escort this one to the plantation. This one was not going to let Father walk away without an explanation!

This one ran out of the door and across the rope bridge, to where Father was still hurriedly walking away over the platform by himself. He acted as if he did not hear the footsteps approaching, but this one knew he did.

"What do you know, Father?" He sighs as Khinashi says these words.

"I know that you'll be safer at the plantation than you would be at the festival tonight." He did not stop, nor slow his pace as he said this.

"So you do know that something will happen then. What is it?"

"I don't know if anything will happen, Khinashi, I just merely suspect. You heard that at the meeting, I know."

"Well what do you suspect will happen?"

He stops and rests his arms against the railing, then looks up at the sky, where both the sun and the moons were visible.

"Something...Something you will not be allowed to get involved in for your own safety. That's all I will say."

This one sighed at the vague answer, it is clear he will not say more. Khinashi ran to catch up as he began walking again.

"Fine, do not tell this one, but what about the others? They do not know do they? If you know something bad will happen, why is it only this one you are keeping away from the festival?"

He gave no response, so this one ran ahead and stopped in front of him, blocking his way.

"Khinashi knows you were the one who told Mother to keep me away, do not try to hide it. Mother and Jo'banja won't be going to the festival anyway, but what about J'shabi, Smallpaws, and Ma'ketra? How will you keep them away?"

"They'll be...safe. I already made sure of that."

The way he said that seemed suspicious, what did he mean he 'already made sure of that'? Ma'ketra and Smallpaws, even despite their pranks, are still allowed to go after all – and eager to as well. J'shabi did not seem as eager, but what else would there be for her to do? What is Father planning to keep them safe? If it so dangerous that he would go to this extent, he must need help, not turn it away!

Once more Khinashi blocked his way, and this one spoke with voice as serious and determined as she could.

"Father, this one is not going to let you do this alone. You need Khinashi's help. Just let her know what it is you think will happen and how to prevent it."

For a few moments this one stared deeply at him, he seemed calm as always, but this one was serious. Then he just laughed.

"Oh Khinashi, you know you can be as stubborn as your Mother sometimes, right? Don't think I didn't expect you to want to get involved, I know you better than that. Even now I'm sure you'll still try and find some way to help...But you can't, Khinashi, it's too dangerous. I can't allow you the chance to try and get involved. That's why I made sure Jahirr would accompany you at all times and keep close watch over you to make sure you don't."

So even Khinashi helping Clan Mother Zalani at the Moon Sugar plantation was his idea...Jahirr tends to work there along with Ma'krin on days where they do not hunt. How much more of this has he already planned out? Does Jahirr know of Father's concerns? If he would have told anyone, it would have been him, for he is his best friend and closest ally.

Before this one could think any further, Jahirr, the black-furred, amber-eyed Pahmar-Raht, strode up behind this one and let a low growl escape from his mouth to announce his presence. Her time ran out.

"I'm sorry Khinashi, but when this is over you'll understand my reasons. I'm just trying to keep you and the others safe. Everything will be all right."

Father looked to Jahirr and tilted his head into the direction of the plantation. Jahirr understood what he meant and shoved his head into this one's back, pushing her forward. Khinashi looks back at her house one last time and sees J'shabi, Smallpaws and Ma'ketra staring at her in the distance, sitting by the steps.

This one dreads the thought of what J'shabi might think of her now. She was already disappointed in her because of what happened with Dagi. She would not know the reasons Khinashi had stolen her trainer's gold and trespassed on the Mane's palace. This one would not have any chance to explain it to her either for awhile, if she would even believe her at this point...

Perhaps it does not matter. In the end, whatever her thoughts, they are justified from her point of view, and she will always be Khinashi's friend, even if she does not see it the other way around right now.

* * *

Khinashi, what's happened to you? The past couple of days you've seemed like a different person, you would have never done anything like...Okay, maybe you would have, but only if you had a very good reason. What is it, Khinashi? What are you hiding? What is your reason? Or have you really just...changed?

I hope you do have one or...Well, it's no use thinking such things. You're not even here, probably shut away in that big Moon Sugar plantation by now. You won't be going to that festival tonight and I'm not sure I feel sorry for you. If you have changed, maybe missing that beloved magic show you keep going on about will bring you back to your senses. Or maybe it won't.

But I won't be around to find out.

Dagi deserved better than what he got, what he saw here. I may have only known him for a few hours but...I saw a bit of myself in him, I can tell he's been through a lot, maybe even like what I've been through. You were the same way to me when I first came here three years ago, Khinashi, but I was more open about myself, would you have done the same to me if I had been so secretive? Would I have ran away?

I'll never know the answer to that, but I do know one thing: I would have never survived a week in the untamed Tenmar forest by myself, not even if I were a Dagi or Dagi-raht myself. Whatever your reasons for leaving, I won't let you throw your life away, Dagi. We're coming after you.

I stand up and turn around to look at the two Khajiit beside me. Speechless they may be, they have wisdom and skill beyond their age, beyond any 'animal' some might mistake them as.

At least, when they want to show it...

"Come on Ketra, Paws, it's time we did this, it's better we start now while we still have plenty of daylight. We might even be back before tomorrow evening if we're quick!"

The two of them both look to eachother for a moment and then stand up to stretch, reluctant to have to move. Paws seems the most unwilling to do this task, I know he was looking forward to the festival.

"I'm sorry, to both of you, I know you wanted to go to the festival, to see the magic show we heard about...but Dagi is in danger, any moment more we wait is a further risk. Even now, we could already..."

I decided not to finish the sentence, there's no use in thinking bad thoughts, we could have left no sooner than we are now. I overheard Jo'azha speaking to Tatanja earlier that Dagi would have headed along the north road if he chose any direction. Sticking close to the Xylo river would ensure he didn't get lost, and that he always had available water. According to a map I borrowed from Jo'azha - without saying why I asked for it - the closest settlement in that direction would be the small town of Portneu View, just outside of the valley. Dagi couldn't have gotten much further than that by now on his feet. Maybe if we ask around there, they might have seen him pass through. It can't be too difficult to remember seeing a calico coloured Dagi boy after all, not many Khajiit boys are born with that mix of colours.

Shaking my head, I look back to the two Khajiit who stare at me with a sense of uncertainty. They may still be a bit unhappy about missing the festival – who wouldn't? It only happens once every several decades or so – but they have to be aware of what could be lost if we don't. Jo'azha and Tatanja may think he'll be alright, safe so long as he follows the roads, but...I'm not so sure, I don't know why, but, I just don't think so. I don't want anything bad to happen to him.

I lift up my pack and raise it over my shoulders. We have enough supplies to last us for a few days, though it shouldn't take us that long. I packed some healing potions too in case anything turns ugly. We may not run into any trouble, but then, we're doing this at all due to the chance that Dagi might have. I'm no stranger to travelling, so I know it's always best to be prepared for anything, even if you end up not needing it.

"We're all set to go. I left a note explaining everything, they won't find it until they realize we're gone. They have to understand why. We won't be gone too long either, it should be okay, right?"

Once more they give me a look of doubt. What is it? Do they think I'm overthinking this all? Do they also think Dagi will be alright and everything is fine, and I'm just wasting their time? Nonetheless, they seem willing to help me, even if they think it's unnecessary.

"Well, are you both ready then?"

They both nod, and Smallpaws jumps on Ma'ketra's back to climb on her head. I know they'll expect me to ride on Ketra's back as well when we reach the forest floor. Normally I wouldn't, it's never felt right to use Senche, Khajiit or otherwise, in that manner, but Ketra's never seemed to mind, and right now we can't afford to be slow.

One last time I look off into the distance, past the trees, out into the valley, to the breadth of the Tenmar. Somewhere within that maze is a calico coloured Dagi boy who could be in danger. And we're going to find him.

* * *

"No, no, not like that Khinashi! You are doing it all wrong! Get away from there, let this one show you..." Clan Mother Zalani roared at this one, bumping her out of the way as she took the knife and stalk Khinashi was holding.

"You want to cut very close to the joints, yes? So you do not waste anything." Zalani cleanly cuts apart the hard joint, almost as thin as a gold coin.

Zalani held out the last joint splitting this one cut, it was about as long as her finger with the joint in the middle.

"You see this, Khinashi? This is wasteful. A waste of Moon Sugar. We do not waste Moon Sugar little one, we eat it, and sell it, and use it for worship of Jone and Jode." She flicks the coin-thin joint at this one's face.

"Perhaps this one could do something else then? This one is not good with knives. What about what those Dagi are doing outside? They are burning the leaves from the the rooted stalks with magical fire to prepare for the cutting. This one knows magic, yes? She could do that."

"No no no, Khinashi, this one has seen your 'magic', she would not have you do that here. You would burn the whole place down! Those Dagi are much older than you, and more skilful, Dagi are good with magic, like Alfiq, but with hands and thumbs to cast those spells."

This one's ears droop in sadness, it would be much more fun to burn leaves with magic than cutting stalk joints. She would even get a chance to use her new fire staff her Father gave her.

"You could tear the rind from stalk cuttings if you prefer? Suthays and Cathays do this well, for our sharp fangs and hands with thumbs make this a simple process. Here, let this one show you."

Khinashi follows Zalani over to another table, where some Suthays and Cathays work at. Each of them picking up stalks and tearing away at them with their teeth to scrape off the rind all along the stalk cutting. The first thing this one noticed about them is that they all had strangely coloured teeth - black teeth, why?

"You see this? A stalk cutting, the hard shell is called the rind. This we do not eat, for it does not taste good and only gets stuck in Khajiit teeth. We eat the middle part, after it goes through other stages. Inside is the sweet Moon Sugar we all know and love."

Zalani brings the cutting up to her mouth and splits the rind from the stalk with one of her fangs. As it splits down she cleanly carves around the whole of the stalk until the only thing left is the smooth center.

"See? It is simple. Now you try."

Khinashi grabs a cutting and tries to replicate the process, using her fangs to split the rind. At first it is hard to find the right spot, but eventually she succeeds and begins to carve.  
As Khinashi does she realizes now how much a strain this is on her teeth. It is not exactly painful, but not pleasant either, and leaves a bad taste in her mouth. It could be painful if she had to do this all day though...

"There, this one finished it. Is this right?"

"Good, good, you did quite well Khinashi. This may be something you are good at. You felt your teeth ache a bit in the process, yes? You could do what these other Khajiit have done and lacquer your teeth – it protects them and you do not feel pain at all from carving rind off of stalk cuttings. It is permanent however, but well worth the cost, no?"

The thought of having to make her teeth black permanently disgusts Khinashi. Is that why all of these Khajiit here have that? This one would prefer to have nothing to do with that, pain or no pain...

"Uh, no thanks Zalani, this one..."

How to word it in such a way as to not upset her...

"Ah, this one is still young - still growing up, yes? Perhaps it is not best to do such a thing so early in life. Khinashi has yet to grow in a few more teeth too."

The excuse seemed logical enough to satisfy her – something she did not expect it seems, for now she contemplates how to respond to that. Her attention drifts away from Khinashi and over to the rest of the inner plantation, as she oversees all that is going on.

Khinashi looks around the plantation, and despite all her hatred of this tooth-destroying job she is impressed at the whole. There is a place for every form of Khajiit here. The Senche pull the plows to prepare the land for the next seeding. The Dagi burn the leaves of the Moon Sugar stalks. Ohmes and Tojays do most of the preparation jobs and of course are best at trading, but any bipedal form of Khajiit can do this if they prefer. The Cathays and Suthays do this painstaking rind carving job. The Pahmar, and sometimes younger Senche, run on top of a rolling wheel that crushes and squeezes the sugar out of the inner canes. Lastly, the Alfiq keep rodents out of the plantation so that we do not lose crops to their hunger.

When Khajiit work together, things like this are the least of our potential.

"Why does this one hear more talking than sounds of working?" Zalani roars out in a frustrated tone, and everyone instantly stops what they are doing to listen.

"Did this one not make it clear earlier that we are to work twice as fast this week? We have a large order of refined Moon Sugar for someone in Orcrest! This one does not know why they need so much but that does not matter! Their deadline was today and we have only shipped three quarters of the requested amount!"

Zalani pauses for a few moments, looking about the plantation. The sounds of Khajiit talking in the background died down, but the pace did not seem to improve.

"This one will start cutting sugar out of your wages if she sees any of you slacking! Yes, any of you! One single cat found sleeping on the job will ruin it for everyone, and you will all be staying an extra hour to make up for it!"

At last everyone around the plantation seemed to work faster. Zalani looked back to Khinashi for a moment to tell her to keep carving rind, before walking off to scout down any slackers. In the distance this one could see other Khajiit looking around, some elbowing others to wake them up so they all did not get in trouble. No one here wanted to stay an extra hour indeed.

And this one had no intention of staying a further hour already. The festival would be starting soon and no matter what her Father's protests, this one feels she can, and will, help. She knows to look for those two travelers, if they are really involved, and what they look like. One is a large dark brown-furred Cathay-raht with three scars on his muzzle, and a long dark mane. The other is a thin black-furred Dagi-raht with a bunch of jewelry and no mane to speak of. If she can spot them, be certain of their involvement and inform the guards, Father, or anyone, then perhaps she could stop whatever it is they plan to do, and whatever this 'magic show' really is.

This one will just have to wait for the right moment and opportunity, and form a plan of escape, but it will be difficult. Jahirr is a master hunter, able to run faster than any two-legged Khajiit could ever hope to. As a Pahmar-raht he can attune his nose to track one's scent from afar, much further than other forms of Khajiit. Most of all he is determined to follow Father's orders and not let this one out of his sight or senses...but then Khinashi is likewise determined to do just that.

* * *

Ma'ketra lets out a bored moan as the three of us continue on the road. She insisted that I ride on her back, and at first I did, but with the influx of travelers along the path heading to Torval for the festival, it became easier just to walk.

Each group of people we've passed I've asked about the calico coloured Dagi boy. All so far have not seen him. Maybe Jo'azha was wrong and he took a different direction?

It's only been an hour or so since we left, so perhaps it's too soon to have any doubts. Still, if he would have taken the main road he should have been seen by someone. If he did take a different direction, we would find him quicker if we just turned around now. The festival would be taking place as it reaches late afternoon, If we turn back now we could make it back for at least the eclipse itself in the evening, then continue onward with a different path...Maybe then I wouldn't feel as guilty for making Smallpaws and Ma'ketra miss out on it.

In the distance on the stone road, a carriage drawn by Senche-tigers is pulled into view beneath the leaves of the trees. Two Khajiit sit on the bench behind them. Perhaps traders bringing their wares to sell at the festival?

Hmph. Why can't they just pull their own carriages instead of having animals pull it for them?

But if they're traders, then they must have seen even more people along the road, for they would have made stops along the way in towns and villages.

"What do you think, Ketra, Paws? Do you think those people might have seen him?"

Ketra looks back at this one with weary eyes and imitates - as best she could - a shrug. Paws is fast asleep still perched on her head. I don't know how he manages that.

"Well, if they haven't, then we can turn back and try a different direction, and stop by Torval for the festival. Sorry again for making you do this..."

Ma'ketra gave no response.

As we walked closer to the traders, I could make out more of what they looked like. Two Khajiit males wearing what you'd expect a travelling trader to wear. One was a Cathay-raht with dark brown fur, and it looked like he had some scars on his face...strange for a trader, but then travelling on the road can be dangerous. The other was a black-furred Dagi-raht with excessive jewelry, but not as much as Dar-Zhar'do. What is it with most Khajiit and their obsession with jewelry? Then again, I'm a Khajiit too, of course. Why don't I like jewelry?

The traders appear to be amidst a conversation when they begin to pass by, but unfortunately I'll have to interrupt them.

"Excuse me," I say. Both of them instantly turn their heads to face me, as if I caught them by surprise.

"You're traders right? You must have seen a lot of people on the road. By any chance have you seen a calico coloured Dagi boy?"

The Dagi-raht turns to face the Cathay-raht and says 'calico' under his breath, as if checking with him before responding. The Cathay-raht pushes him back to face me.

"Uh, what was his name?"

"Name? I just asked if you've seen someone by that description, I don't think there's many calico boys anyway. But I don't know his name, he never told me, we just called him Dagi."

"You've seen him then? Where is he?"

"Well of course I've seen him, but I don't know where he is or I wouldn't be asking you if you knew. He...Well, he left, by himself, a couple days ago and we think he might have taken the north road out of Torval. We're looking to find him in case he ran into some trouble, it's not safe travelling alone in the Tenmar."

The Dagi-raht starts laughing at this, but the Cathay-raht pushed him again to focus.

"Uh, no. Yes? Maybe we have seen him? Ack-!"

After pushing the Dagi-raht again to interrupt him, the Cathay-raht speaks in place of his companion.

"No, we haven't seen anyone by that description. You're right about travelling alone though, you should take that advice yourself."

"I'm not alone, Ma'ketra and Smallpaws here are with me."

To this the Cathay-raht scoffed. "Well, good luck on your...search. You said you think he took the north road out of Torval?"

"Maybe. I'm not so sure anymore, no one I've seen on the road so far has said they've seen him."

"Perhaps he could not want to be seen then, no?" The Dagi-raht responds this time.

Clearly the Cathay-raht is annoyed at his companion now as he punches him in the face. "Will you just shut up?"

The Dagi-raht clings to his muzzle and groans some incomprehensible words. Perhaps it'd be best to leave them alone...

"Well then, uh, have a good time at the festival? If that's where you're headed, I mean?"

Neither of them gave any response, save for the moaning of the wounded Dagi-raht. The Cathay-raht whipped the Senche-Tigers back to pulling the carriage, which made me wince.

It only just now dawned on me that whatever it is they're carrying must be quite heavy if those Senche-Tigers are straining so hard to pull it.

And their voices...I can't quite place it, but they sounded almost familiar in some way. The Cathay-raht was clearly not raised by Khajiit, or at least not native Khajiit, by the way he talked like me and Jo'azha.

Whatever the case, that's not important. What's important right now is finding Dagi. The traders may not have seen him, but what if the Dagi-raht was right? What if Dagi didn't want to be seen? Maybe he didn't want us to come after him and so made sure no travelers would be able to tell us about him? That could make things more difficult...But I'm not going to give up.

"Alright Ma'ketra, you win. I'll ride on your back for now. If Dagi is trying to hide then no other travelers would have seen him anyway. We might as well move quicker to track him down ourselves. We can still travel for a couple hours before we'll have to stop to rest for the night, and then we shouldn't be too much further away from Portneu View."

* * *

This one has lost count of the amount of stalk cuttings she has carved now...The aching in her teeth tells her it has been far too many. With a final tug of her fang she finishes another and tosses it on the pile that now threatens to spill onto the floor. Why could she have not been given a different task?

In the distance, this one can make out the sound of instruments playing over the chatter of the festival attendees. A travelling troubadour starts off the evening with an old Khajiiti folk-song in our language of Ta'agra. Father was right, she can hear it from here. If she is to want to help him at all she is running out of time, but how will she get away from Jahirr without being noticed? He is running the wheel as he usually does, but in the direction that his eyes are always on this one. Even now he stares, looking as if just waiting for this one to make a move. Nothing comes to mind.

In defeat for the moment, this one reaches to grab another stalk cutting to carve with her teeth but she realizes there are no more. Zalani came by to pick up the finished ones and drop some more down for her to carve earlier, but she has not seen her in awhile. Where could she be?

She is not at any of the tables inside of the plantation, and outside is too crowded from festival attendees of all forms to see everyone. There is a sleeping Senche blocking most of the view, as well.

Wait...That is Ma'krin!

Tied to Ma'krin's back are ropes to pull the plow to prepare the land, and nearby are many different Khajiit trying to wake him up. Clearly they do not want to face punishment for Ma'krin's laziness and need to stay another hour if Zalani finds them. They do not know Ma'krin very well it seems, for they are not doing the right things. No amount of noise, pushing or shoving will work, it either takes much more than that, or simply the correct technique. Besides, they will regret their actions if they do manage to wake him up the wrong way...this one has heard many screams across the house as an enraged Ma'krin rudely awoken chased them down for retribution, and yet Smallpaws does this purposefully.

Hmm, actually...What if they did? If an enraged Ma'krin were to cause havoc about the plantation, that just might be the distraction she needs to get Jahirr's eyes off of Khinashi! He would be the only one fast enough to subdue Ma'krin before he breaks anything, and all fear Zalani's rage when things are broken. He would have no choice.

Except that does not answer how exactly they would wake him up rudely enough to do that, and what about Jahirr's sense of smell? Even if this one did manage to get away, he would be on her trail in a matter of seconds after Ma'krin is dealt with.

Sigh. It is never so easy, is it?

This one looks around about the plantation further and spots the correct area to place all of her carved Moon Sugar stalks. With some effort, she heaves it up and struggles to walk over to it.

After placing, or perhaps dropping, the stalks onto the table she looks around for where the table for new, uncarved stalks might be at, until a voice from nearby interrupts her search.

"Mmm, this smells delicious. Do you think Zalani would mind if we were to...sample some of it? After all, is it not wise to ensure the taste meets the quality standard?"

Turning around, Khinashi sees the voice had come from one of two Suthays nearby at one of the Moon Sugar boilers.

"Go ahead, this one has not seen Zalani for awhile, she could not notice if you just take a little, no? Be careful not to fall in though, this one knew someone else who did once. Very sticky, it took them hours of scrubbing to get it all out of their fur. They did smell good though."

"On second thought...This one prefers to not have sticky fur. What of those Moon Sugar candies over there? They must need a lot of taste testing, no?"

The two Suthays walk down the stairs near the boiler and off to pillage innocent Moon Sugar candies a few stations away.

Hmm, this one does not like having sticky fur either, but perhaps she could make an exception today. It is the Festival of the Third Moon, the smell of Moon Sugar will be present all throughout the city, she could mask her scent with this and Jahirr would not be able to track her down with his nose!

Perhaps she could also use it to wake up Ma'krin?

As casually and inconspicuously as Khinashi could, she picks up a nearby bucket and dunks it into the boiler below to fill it to the brim. She could not be the one to wake Ma'krin up herself – it would be too obvious for Jahirr. Too dangerous, too... This is not water or milk like Smallpaws tends to use, it is sticky Moon Sugar wax. She does not know exactly how Ma'krin will react to this, other than his waking tantrum that will provide the distraction she needs.

This one always keeps Jahirr in the corner of her eye at all times. He is likely still intently watching her, does he suspect something amiss? It is too risky to look at him directly, that would confirm any suspicions she had.

With bucket in hand she looks for someone nearby. Someone who might play along with her scheme. Someone who would seem to naturally be looking for her and not just be a part of a ruse to escape.

She does not find anyone who meets this criteria but a young boy runs away from where Ma'krin and the others are. Perhaps he will do. This one waves to him and pretends like she knows him, and that he was actually running to her in the first place.

"Hey, you, with the muzzle! You are trying to wake Ma'krin up, no?"

"Who?"

Sigh. They do not even know his name.

"The Senche that is supposed to be pulling the plow?"

"Yeah?"

This one is not sure if that was to mean 'yeah, what about him' or 'yeah, we are trying to wake him up'.

"Uh, well, here, try this – just splash this bucket on him, this one is sure it will...wake him up, yes?"

Khinashi hands him the bucket, he seems a bit confused and nearly drops it.

"Splash?" That is the only thing he says in response.

"Yes...Splash the bucket on Ma'krin, the Senche pulling the plow, it will wake him up." This one mimics the movement of splashing the bucket with her hands. The boy nearly replicates this himself and nearly splashes Khinashi, before she stops it.

"No, not on this one, on Ma'krin! Over there!" Khinashi points over to Ma'krin and the others, and mimics the splashing movements again.

"Splash!" He says ecstatically, and runs toward them. As he does, this one realizes that his lack of communication skills might have meant he was not raised by speaking Khajiit, and may not have been educated in language as thoroughly yet. Some families prefer to raise their children themselves regardless of form, especially if they have relatives who are able to help in the teaching.

Ah well, hopefully he understood what Khinashi meant at least, and splashes Ma'krin and not-

Everyone else too...

"Splash!" This one hears him shout, followed by the screams and yelps of many Khajiit, including a now awake and very enraged Ma'krin.

Ma'krin leaps into a charge, roaring and running wildly through the plantation's interior, bringing the plow along behind him. Several khajiit dive out of the way to avoid being run over, and the heavy plow at his back knocks over tables and other work stations. Ma'krin is running quite fast considering how heavy that plow is... Moon Sugar stalks are thrown to the side and piles drop to the ground as people make way for enraged Senche. At last, Jahirr leaps down from the rolling wheel – just before Ma'krin tips it over, and pursues him.

This one sneakily backs away before Jahirr can notice, and over to the Moon Sugar boiler.

As Khinashi climbs the stairs and looks over the railing to the boiler below her, she takes a moment to think about what exactly she is doing. She is about to jump into a pot of hot Moon Sugar wax to cover her scent, escape the plantation whilst it is in the chaos of the enraged Ma'krin dragging a plow around knocking everything over, whom she set loose purposely, in the slight chance that she might be able to help prevent a dangerous event that she is still not exactly sure will be happening at all tonight...Against both Mother and Father's direct commands to not go to the festival or to get involved.

Well, no use standing around. Time to get sticky!

* * *

As we continue down the road, I look up at the sky. Already the moons are covering parts of it, within less than 15 minutes now the total eclipse will take place, and only for a few minutes, and during that is the only time that a Lunar Champion can be born, a successor to the current Mane.

Ma'ketra whimpers, and Smallpaws holds a frown, and I realize that both of them, too, are looking at the sky. They were really looking forward to the festival.

"Don't worry, we'll be able to see the eclipse anywhere we're at, right? Besides, I'm sure the festival can't be all that exciting..."

Both of them look at me and tilt their heads, as if I said something stupid.

"What? I mean, so what if we're not there, we're having fun, too, right?"

They held their stare for a few moments before turning away. Clearly I wasn't helping.

Well, at least we're out here and not stuck working inside a Moon Sugar plantation all day. Khinashi must be bored to death right now.


	6. Chapter 5: Purr of the Moment (P2)

**Chapter 5: Purr of the Moment (Part 2)**

Khinashi breaks through the crowd the many forms of Khajiit around the outside of the plantation, ignoring the remarks on why she is covered in sticky Moon Sugar wax from head to toe. When this one finally reaches an empty plot of grass, she takes a moment to wipe off some of the wax from her face and hands. This one is already having regrets from jumping into that thing, it was hotter than she expected, and this sticky feeling is going to get on her nerves real fast. Khinashi will just have to look forward to taking a long bath after this is all over, the sooner the better. The Suthay was right, though, this one cannot fault the smell.

Beyond the crowd behind her she can still hear the roars of Ma'krin and the chaos ensuing. It will be some time before Jahirr realizes she has escaped, and even more before he gets the chance to pursue her, and this scent will slow him down.

The Moons and Sun are colliding, and soon the Mane will be pulled out on his palanquin, carried by strong Cathay-raht males, while he wears his ceremonial headdress this one is used to seeing him wear. The troubadours playing music are reaching the end of their songs – songs Khinashi has heard many times, the big event is about to take place. Whatever those travelers are up to must be happening soon. Khinashi must hurry and find out what it is she is even trying to stop.

This one scans the area for any clues... She can see much from the hilltop here near the Moon Sugar plantation. To the southeast is the Mane's palace, with guards littered about the steps, and a Khajiit holding a rug ready to lay it out. This one can see Father and Master Do'hasrandru beside the doors to the palace entrance.

Near the temple of the Two Moons Dance is Tolgun Wide-hand and some of the most experienced students of the dance performing moves to spectators to show them their skill in hand-to-hand combat, in a way as to appear like an art form.

On the other side of the plaza is the Temple of Jone and Jode. It is there that all Khajiit revere the moons and hear Clan Mother Zalani teach lessons to Khajiit of all ages about our history, culture and religion. This one can see Zalani there along with some other patrons that tend to the temple, telling tales to children and their parents – while interpretive dancers enact their stories. So that is why Zalani is not at the plantation...She will have quite the surprise when she returns.

Khinashi sees Mother and Jo'banja talking to some of their friends near our house, it would be best if they did not see this one.

While there are still many people along the platform bridges of the city – particularly the marketplace, which is where the Troubadour is performing – most of the festival seems to be taking place on the ground floor. Stalls are set up to trade many trinkets and snacks to the festival attendees, and acrobats and other strange performers ply their trade – such as the flaming torch jugglers. This one has always wanted to know how they do that...

But where are those two travelers? They must be here somewhere, setting up their 'magic show'...

Hmm...

Khinashi walks about the hilltops to get a better view, and sees a carriage being drawn by two Senche-tigers into the city. It stops as they reach the center, and the two traders leap off from either side and check into the back. What are they selling? Most traders would have arrived far earlier to be able to sell their wares throughout the festival – their is not much point in doing so now. Unless they are bringing an offering to the Mane? This one has heard of that happening before, big gifts on certain occasions. Sometimes it is from the King in Elsweyr in Senchal, or the council of the nomadic cheiftains of the north. They usually do this when they are in their phase of power in accordance to the Riddle'thar and the Ja-kha'jay, during times of prosperity, in thanks for the Mane maintaining peace throughout the land with his spiritual guidance.

This one strains her eyes to get a better look at the traders. They are wearing clothes you would expect a trader to wear...One is a Cathay-raht with dark brown fur, and the other is...

It is them! It is the travelers, the ones who spoke of the magic show!

Khinashi nearly trips over her own tail as she races down the hill from the plantation, and later does trip, rolling down the rest of the hill until she crashes into some bushes at the bottom. Thankfully the music of the festival was enough to drown that out or the travelers would have heard her – for they are merely several steps away now.

This one attunes her ears over to them as they collect things from the carriage. Let us find out what they are really up to...

"So then, the preparations are all set on their end with the Mane, yes?"

"How should I know? We just got here! I'm about to go check on them and get ready. You remember what your job is and how to do it right? I don't have to tell you again for the hundredth time?"

"Yes yes, Rajirr, of course this one remembers. He remembered the first time you told this one too. Dazlah was just making sure you remembered, yes? So...You do remember, right?"

Hmm, so the Cathay-raht is Rajirr and the Dagi-raht is Dazlah. What did Dazlah mean about 'preparations with the Mane'?

"I don't understand how you can keep forgetting it, all you have to do is bring the carriage up to the plaza and present it to the Mane when he walks out. Make up something like it's an offering to him or whatever, you just need to keep it going until the eclipse happens, and then you give the signal."

"Ah yes the signal. Then everyone will jump out from the back and the killing begins, yes? That is the fun part."

"Right. Whatever, just remember your targets, you didn't forget those too did you?"

"Rajirr, this one did not get to where he is today in the brotherhood by forgetting faces and names. And...if he did, then he will just make up for it by killing more, no?"

"We're not even a part of the brotherhood anymore Dazlah, and don't forget that's all because of you. Anyway, there's not much time left and I need to get ready, I'll just have to hope one of the others remember the targets. Don't stuff this up, Dazlah."

Rajirr runs off, up the stairs to the plaza and away from where Khinashi can see. As he does, this one takes note that the music played by the troubadours has finished, and the chattering among the festival attendees has died down. The big moment is fast approaching within a few minutes now...

So they are planning to assassinate the Mane? That is why those at the meeting were worried about him, someone wants to kill him! But why? Who would want to kill Rid-Rawl'vah? He is a good Mane, we have had peace as long as this one has been alive to notice! Which perhaps is not that long...but still.

There are more of them too, in the carriage, they plan to jump out and start killing during the eclipse. How did they manage to pass the guards posted outside of the city? They must have been smooth talkers to convince them not to check inside before letting them in.

This one must inform the guards about them to prepare and get people to safety, but before that, Khinashi must deal with Dazlah. How will this one do that? She cannot just walk up to him and fight him, spells or no the guards would be on her in an instant and would not understand the circumstances. Plus, the ones in the carriage could quite easily kill her if they mistook that as their signal...

Khinashi looks around, there are actually no guards nearby for quite a ways, if this one could just somehow lure Dazlah over here...

"Hmm, now what is that delightful smell?"

Well, that was easy.

Dazlah turns to face the bushes Khinashi is in, and this one's heart skips a beat. This Moon Sugar wax must be very strong, perhaps that is not a good thing for hiding.

This one quietly takes out her staff from her back by instinct, although she is not quite sure what she is doing. The bushes are just high and thick enough that he cannot see her yet, but when he gets close enough, it will be too late. She will have to face him.

By her feet, this one spots a small rock. Hmm, perhaps, it just might work...

Just before Dazlah reaches the bushes, Khinashi throws the rock out from the bushes away from his sight, where it lands behind him. Suddenly he stops and his ears perk up at the sound.

"Who is there?"

This one slams her staff against the back of his head. He collapses and falls to the ground.

"Khinashi, the one who is going to stop you and your friend and save the Mane!"

"Butterflies..." Dazlah mumbles through his teeth. What? What do butterflies have to do with anything?

This one drags the unconscious Dagi-raht into the bushes before anyone notices. That was exciting! This one had never done anything like that before. J'shabi had shown her where to hit someone in the head to knock them out, and even had her test it on Khinashi to prove it, but she never thought she would have to do this herself! It is good she still remembers it, for this might not be the only time she will have to do this tonight...

With Dazlah down, those assassins in the carriage will not hear their signal, but they may realize their Dagi-raht is missing if the eclipse takes place and they hear nothing.

Khinashi runs back up the hill and looks by the palace. The Mane has yet to come out, but the people nearby seem ready, and impatient almost. Perhaps something is holding them up. Khinashi cannot see the Cathay-raht Rajirr anywhere, but that right now is not her priority.

This one runs up to the nearest guard she sees – one of the ones around the Plaza square, just so happening to be one of the few Khajiit who did not mind taking such a job and are not a part of the Mane's personal guard. They must be told of the planned assassination!

"You there, guard! The Mane is in danger! Some people are going to try to assassinate him tonight- the carriage, over there, it has people inside, they plan to start killing people when the eclipse happens, you have to get more guards ready and get people to safety-"

"Slow down girl, what is this about the Mane being in danger?"

"People are going to try to assassinate him! You have to stop them!"

"Hah, do not worry, the Mane is not going to be assassinated, he has an entire guard squad protecting him, and the mage Jo'azha and Master Do'hasrandru. Any assassin would be foolish-"

"Yes this one knows Jo'azha is a great mage, he is her father and has taught her a lot, but the carriage-"

"Wait a second...that means you are Khinashi then, no? The same Khinashi who got thrown in jail yesterday for trespassing in the Mane's courtyard and stealing coin from Tolgun Wide-hand, hmm?"

"Yes...She had good reasons to though and that is unimportant now, what is important is that you get guards to surround the carriage-"

"Hah, this one sees what this is, and he will not fall for it. Jo'azha said you might try and pull something to distract us and get inside the palace. This one is not leaving his post, and do not try to fool any of the others, for we all know about you and your tricks."

"But the Mane is in danger-!"

"The Mane is not in any danger, girl, he is well-protected! Now, you would do well to walk away before this one decides to arrest you for trying to start a panic."

"But-Nevermind..."

This one droops her ears and whiskers as she fails to convince the guard of the danger. It looks like she will have to handle this all by herself, somehow...

Khinashi's thoughts are interrupted as drums start to play nearby the palace entrance. A rug is being rolled out down the stairs to the plaza, and the heavy doors to the palace swing open to reveal the Mane being carried out on his palanquin by four strong Cathay-rahts. His ceremonial headdress must be extremely heavy, and hot to wear. It being three times their width just wearing the braids of every Khajiit in your tribe on special ceremonies, the Manes can barely walk with all the weight!

It also makes him a sitting cat for an assassin to kill him.

Father and Master Do'hasrandru walk by his side as he descends the steps to the main plaza. The drumming continues, followed by other instruments. He will now be making his speech to the Khajiit of Torval to welcome a new Lunar Champion to Nirni, just before the eclipse takes place, and afterwards he would talk about a lot of boring political and religious things, that is, if this were going to go as planned.

If the guards will not help Khinashi, she must flush out the assassins from the carriage herself, only then will the guards realize the threat and take care of them –and it would perhaps be better to do it before the eclipse so they are not ready.

But how will she flush them out? Poking her head in the carriage and insulting their mothers does not seem like a good idea, in fact, being close at all would be unwise...

Khinashi leans on her staff to rest and think, and suddenly the idea becomes obvious. Perhaps it is finally time to test out this fire staff!

This one takes the guard's advice and leaves him be, and finds a spot far enough away from anyone that she will have enough time to run out of sight before they look over to where the fireball comes from. So long as it gives her a few seconds, they will realize their attention is more important to the carriage with a bunch of screaming armed assassin's jumping out while on fire.

"It is time," the Mane begins his speech. "In under a minute the Third Moon will collide with Two and the future of our land, and of our people, will be decided."

Hmm, that is not what the Mane normally says, or so from what Khinashi has read – then again most Manes like to add their own bit to their speeches. This one readies her staff, and squints her eyes in focus on the carriage. She has never used a staff before, but from what Father says, they are easy to use. Hopefully he is right, for missing is not an option, everything hinges on this shot.

"What will the gods have in store for us this time? Will a Mane be born to succeed this one? Will our harvests be plentiful and our land free of war? Will our people unite or fall into disarray?"

Khinashi begins to let the flame flow around the tip of her staff, letting it vibrate and get the feel for it being let loose.

"The lattice dictates every aspect of our lives – from our very form at birth, to the one who leads us. We cannot change this, and must accept it as a necessary trial to our lives, and-"

The time is now. Khinashi thrusts the staff forward and - to her surprise - a fireball successfully launches from its end, whisking straight down to the carriage far away. She only just allows her enough time to see it make contact with the covering of the carriage before she sprints away as fast as her legs will take her, further atop the hills toward the Mane's palace. As she does, she hears the screams of every Khajiit in the area as realization hits them that something is on fire, and even more when the assassins jump out.

The sound of swords being pulled from their clasps sing in unison and soon drowned out by that of the feet of all forms of Khajiit, from the mighty Senche-Raht to the tiny Alfiq, stampeding across the city.

And now the eclipse is taking place. Everything suddenly turns darker, until Khinashi's Khajiiti eyes adjust themselves to brighten her surroundings. This one has never seen an eclipse before...It is like a big ring of fire over darkness!

Focus, Khinashi. You are not here to look at the eclipse, the Mane is still in danger! The guards will be handling the carriage assassins now – but what of the Cathay-raht? He had mentioned checking up on others, perhaps somewhere another group lies in wait ready to strike, and this one must find them.

Every guard not in the Mane's personal squad have left the palace completely unguarded, allowing Khinashi free reign as she hugs a wall close to the entrance. She looks beyond the corner and sees that the Mane and his protectors are retreating inside, followed by the sound of someone barring the door.

This one does not hesitate to run back and leap inside one of the windows before the guards inside get a chance to look. Khinashi narrowly evades detection by the onlooking guards by hiding behind one of the wooden pillars in the room. The smell of incense fills her nose, the Mane's palace is always scented this way. This is good, it should mean her Moon Sugar scent will not give her away here.

"Guards, secure the windows, allow no one a chance to sneak in." Father says. A bit too late for that, this one thinks to herself...

"So it was true then...He does want to kill this one..." The Mane says.

"He will not get the chance, Rid-Rawl'vah, for we are here to protect you. We prepared for this." Master Do'hasrandru speaks.

Hmm, who is it they suspect is trying to kill him? Khinashi does still not know this.

This one hears the footsteps of guards approaching her from the other side, and she realizes hiding behind this pillar will not be suitable for much longer. There is no where to go, though, she cannot run out from behind the pillar at the risk of being caught by the guards, and it is too late to jump back out the window...

Then the only way is up.

Khinashi extends her claws fully and stabs them into the wooden pillar and begins the process of climbing up it. Hands then feet, slowly inching upwards, high enough to where the guards would have to tilt their heads to see her. The sticky wax actually helps in this regard, this one is not so sure it would be so easy otherwise...Still, if she were a Dagi she would have been at the top in seconds.

This one then realizes that there is actually a flat series of wooden boards all about the ceiling holding up the roofs that she could stand on, it would make for a great lookout point.

She hefts herself up onto the narrow board with some gasps of struggle, only now noticing just how far up she is. If she were to fall straight down, she would not be getting back up. This one has never been afraid of heights, but that does not make them any less fatal.

This one looks around to where she might be able to move along the wooden boards, and her muscles freeze intently before she takes a single step. In front of her, perhaps a dozen or so steps away, is a Dagi archer assassin aiming his bow down at the room. Khinashi hesitates to look around, and finds three more archers perched on all four corners of the main hall.

It is a trap.

Below her she sees the guards turning around and returning to the center of the room, making a circle around Father and Master Do'hasrandru.

Behind the Mane, whom is now standing on the far side of the room, one of the Cathay-rahts that were holding the palanquin suddenly grabs the Mane by the neck and holds a dagger to him.

Father and Do'Hasrandru both lunge forward at him, and every guard around them steps forward and raises their weapons. They stop, realization falling over them. Every guard here is with the assassins.

"Make another move and the Mane's dead." The Cathay-raht holding him says.

"So you are all with the assassins then, no? This is disappointing, he was not looking forward to killing anyone tonight." Do'Hasrandru responds.

Oh no. They cannot know about the archers. This one does not doubt Father and Hasrandru could take down all of those guards, but with the Mane being held at dagger point they cannot move, and if they cannot move, they will not be able to evade the archers.

Well then, perhaps this one will just have to take them out.

Khinashi lifts up a hand and focuses hard on the magic training she has done. She has never been good at many spells, but Illusion and Alteration are her forte. With some effort, she succeeds at casting a spell to silence her footsteps. It should be enough to allow her to get close to the archers without alerting them, and the incense will cover her scent.

Khinashi sneaks toward the archer with her staff at hand, oblivious to his soon unconscious fate, and slams it across his head. This one catches him and lays him down on the boards so he does not fall and alarm the others.

Perhaps...If this one can just sneak over to the others and knock them out as well, she can prevent the assassination from above, but what are they waiting for? Why do they not just shoot him now and be done with it? They must be waiting for a signal.

"Please, don't kill me..." The Mane pleads.

"Quiet, you."

"What're you waiting for, hmm? If you're here to murder the Mane, you're in the position to do so right now. What's stopping you? You must have a reason." This time it was Father that spoke. Why would Father say that?

The Cathay-raht laughs, and throws his head back, unveiling his face, and something suddenly makes sense. It is Rajirr!

"Oh, come on, Azha, do you think I'd let this moment pass without saying anything? Do you think I'd just kill the Mane without staring into your eyes as you watch helplessly, as you realize who I am, and regret pangs inside of your every nerve?" Rajirr's voice speaks with growing anger and emotion.

This one knocks out the second of the four archers. Two more to go, but how much longer does she have?

"Actually, I have no idea who you are. Care to elaborate?"

"Yes, that is me-wait, what do you mean you don't know? You don't recognize me?"

"Cathay-raht, dark brown fur, scarred face? I've seen a lot of other Khajiit in my days."

What is Father doing? He almost seems to be messing around with him, he does not seem at all concerned, unless, is he...Stalling him? Did he see Khinashi? Does he know of the archers?

"Jo'azha, what are you-?" Do'hasrandru looks confused, but Father interrupts before he could continue.

"Do you have a name, perhaps?"

"Well, it has been a long time...Fine, I'm Rajirr. Feeling stupid now for forgetting?"

Khinashi reaches and knocks out the third archer now, whom almost spotted her whilst he scratched his head in confusion from the events below. Clearly they did not intend for this.

Just one more to go...Keep it up Father, if you can stall him for just a bit longer, she will be able to save your life.

"Would that be Do'Rajirr or Dar'Rajirr? Or, no, you don't look like Dar'Rajirr, he was not as tall."

"No, just Rajhirr."

"Can't say I remember you then, sorry."

"Excuse this one, but, could he perhaps be let go-" The Mane intervenes.

"Shut up. Another word out of you and you're losing your tongue."

At last, this one knocks out the final archer. It is safe from above now, at least, but there is still the matter of Rajirr holding the Mane hostage. Neither Father nor Do'hasrandru can make a move against him or the guards until he is dealt with...but how will she do that?

She could use a fireball to strike him from above, but no, if she missed, this wooden palace would go up in flames. Even if she did not miss it still might, there has to be another way.

"So, how did we meet?"

This one scans around her surroundings for anything useful. Nothing, only the wooden boards she is walking on and the curtains hanging about the walls.

Hmm...The curtains...

This one looks as to where the Mane and Rajirr are standing.

"What do you mean 'how did we meet', we met in Cyrodiil when you-No...Forget it! You're just trying to stall me, you know all of this, you remember me!"

"Wit does not seem to run in your family, Rajirr. That took you just long enough." Father scratches his chin calmly as if he was not worried at all.

"Fire! Now!" Rajirr waves his other hand up in a signal, but no arrows are let loose, for there are no archers left standing to shoot them.

This one pulls at the curtain and jumps off from the wooden boards, swinging down as the rest of the curtain strains and falls loose, Khinashi cannot help but yell from the thrill of the ride.

"I said...!"

Rajirr turns around and looks up just in time for Khinashi to make contact and smash her legs into him, sending him flying back against the wall. He hit it hard enough to shake the palace, and, clearly, to knock him out for the time being.

The Mane is at the floor, and Khinashi and Master Do'hasrandru run to help him up.

"Are you alright, Rid-Rawl'vah?" Khinashi says.

"This one is fine, just a little blood...What happened?"

"Do'hasrandru does not know...Jo'azha! What is your daughter doing here? This one thought you said you made sure she would not be able to get involved!"

"Clearly I was foolish to think I could outwit my daughter, but you have to admit, it's a good thing she showed up. Good job taking care of those archers Khinashi, oh, and nice touch with the curtains."

This one smiled upon hearing him say that, to be proud of her for not doing as he asked.

But that smile turned to a frown as this one noticed the remaining guards approaching, circling us and the Mane.

"I think you should let us take care of it from here though..."

Father and Do'hasrandru prepared themselves for battle, circling this one and the Mane to protect us, as the battle began.

One of the guards lunged forward to Khinashi, but Do'hasnrandru grabbed his arm from the side and twisted it with such speed and force that the weapon flew out of his hand and stuck into the ground below. He fell to his knees and Hasrandru finished him with a kick to the face, sending him flat on the ground. He will not be getting back up.

To the side this one saw a few of the guards close in on Father, but before they could lunge at him, two giant Frost Atronachs, twice their size and width, appeared between them. Khinashi had to turn her head away for she knew their power and as she did, she heard the screams of the guards as they flew in the air with bloody wounds in their chests.

Back at Do'hasrandru a flurry of guards were upon him, Hasrandru was unarmed – but he never used weapons – he used the enemies weapons against them. One guard lunged forward to him, aiming for his chest, but Do'hasrandru ducked backwards, also dodging another who made a swing for his neck from behind, and the two guards instead made contact with eachother.

A third guard came from the side and Do'hasrandru rolled away in time to dodge the greatsword of a Cathay-raht being swung down upon him. The offset of the weight gave the Suthay-raht enough time to recover and ran up the brutes arms and twisted his head with his feet whilst jumping over him.

Over to Father, guards were swinging at him from all directions, but he was deflecting blows with his wooden staff while sending bolts of lightning whenever given the time to aim. The wood would normally not resist a sword blow at all, but this one knows Father is using alteration to make the wood as resistant as stone, but still as light.

Some guards lost their nerve from fighting the Frost Atronachs and made a run for the windows, but they only ended up pinned on the wall...

Finally with them both finishing up the last few guards, in what could only been half a minute, the entire two-dozen squad of assassins posing as guards were now nothing but memories. This one has heard stories of Father and Master Do'hasrandru fighting alongside eachother before, but...to see it with her own eyes. This one is not sure whether to be amazed at their skill or in horror at the bloodshed. Perhaps both.

The only ones who now remain are the four of us - Father, Do'hasrandru, Mane Rid-Rawl'vah and Khinashi. We won. The assassination attempt failed, and it was all thanks to Khinashi not listening to her parents. Perhaps she should not listen to them more often!

Khinashi helped the Mane to stand up, and he approached both Father and Do'hasrandru, lifting his hands to show praise to his defenders. Father and Do'hasrandru hold their arms crossed about their chest, and bow their heads in reverance. This one decided she should do this as well from the side.

"Thank you, both of you, and you, Khinashi. Without you here today to defend this one, he would have surely died. Today the Mane lives on and can guide his people, and pursue his goals. And it is all thanks to you that this is possible."

The sound of swords being drawn from their clasps catches this one off guard.

As does the sound of them being stabbed into flesh.

"But this one regrets to tell you that the old Mane, Rid-Rawl'vah, died hours ago. Those assassins were meant to kill you. Clearly however, if you want anything done right, you have to do it yourself."

"Ra-Zara'chi...It cannot be...How..." Do'hasrandru breaks out the words.

Ra-Zara'chi pulls out the swords from Father and Do'hasrandru's chests, as they fall to the ground backwards. A hand held up to the wound where blood pours out of. Khinashi cannot move, she is just too confused, too shocked...Just...What? This cannot be happening, it just simply cannot.

"How indeed? In truth this one was not planning on using this disguise, but when his brother came to him earlier in the day to talk, well, it would be foolish to miss the oppurtunity then. Such a fool he was, he did not believe you or the others, he had hope. Hope got him killed."

"But...he was your brother." Do'hasrandru speaks again.

"He was a weak-minded fool not fit to lead this land. He could not do what must be done."

"You can't do this, Ra-Zara'chi..." Father speaks. "It will be the end of us all."

"It will be the end of something, Jo'azha, but also the beginning. The end to our curse, and the beginning of our reckoning. Now sleep."

Ra-Zara'chi brings his swords down upon them both once more, and they choke out a last gasp of breath. Father turns his head, and his eyes meet Khinashi's.

"I'm sorry..." He says, and the stare of his eyes seems less in focus, as if he is no longer looking at her.

His words rip Khinashi out of her frozen state. Why is he apologizing? What does that mean? She runs to him and collapses, shaking him to wake him up, but he does not stir. But he cannot be dead, he is Father, the Moon Hallowed, the most powerful mage in Elsweyr, this is just a trick, a magic trick like the magic show...what that the show? It is a really bad show.

A few more moments pass and now this one is not so sure it is a trick...But it cannot be. The tears dampen her fur cheeks as they flood her eyes, but it cannot be.

Then finally, as a sword is drawn from their scabbard once more, the realization hits her hard, he will not be getting up. He is dead.

And Ra-Zara'chi killed him.

Khinashi raises her head and bares all of her teeth, as she looks upon the murderer, who is walking toward her now with his swords stretched out.

"You killed him!" Is all this one can say, for there are not words for that could express her anger.

"This one regrets that you had to witness this. It would have been easier had you not been here to see it, had you not gotten involved. Ra-Zara'chi is also sorry that because you did, he cannot allow you to leave here alive."

Suddenly, with a speed faster than you could imagine a Khajiit wearing such a heavy headress could move, he lunges a sword toward her, where this one's chest would have been, had she not moved with an even faster speed out of the way.

She rolls to the side and within an instant is jumping on his back, thrusting her claws deep into him, scratching madly. She does not know why she did not just use magic, she does not know why she is doing anything, but the headdress is too thick...and this sticky wax does not help.

Ra-Zara'chi is angered by this and with his other hand grabs her by the throat from behind his back, and starts strangling her, crushing her neck with his heavy hands.

Khinashi cannot breathe, and the light around her is dimming as she loses the ability to feel anything that is going on, but she will not give up! She opens her mouth and bites down as hard as she possibly can into the hand that holds her. Ra-Zara'chi yells in pain from this but does not let go, she must go deeper, deeper than the skin. She takes her claws and stabs his hand with them too, and her fangs pass through skin, and through the other side. Blood is pouring out, and at last the pain is too much for him, he releases her and she falls to the ground, too weak to move, but alive.

He kicks her in the stomach, and now she can barely think straight. Holding on to conciousness is an ardous task in itself.

The doors to the palace swing open, someone must have unhatched the lock. People are marching in now, she does not open her eyes to see who.

"Mane Rid-Rawl'vah! It is good to see you are safe. We have caught the assassins who infiltrated the city, no one was harmed. They were too confused and scattered from the carriage fire to do anything, which we are still unsure who caused it, and...Rid-Rawl'vah? What happened in here? Are you alright?"

"Get this one a healer. Those were not the only assassins. There were more...We have been betrayed. This one's own brother, Ra-Zara'chi, convinced Jo'azha and Master Do'hasrandru to turn against this one. Even Jo'azha's daughter, Khinashi - there on the floor - saught Rid-Rawl'vah's murder, we do not know how many more may be with them, or why."

"Your own brother, Ra-Zara'chi conspires against you? You are sure of this, Mane? We found his son amidst the assassins, we were not sure at first...but if what you say is true..."

"He is alive, then? Bring him here!"

Some moments pass as the shuffling of feet bring someone in front of the Mane.

"Yes, father? What is it?"

There is a long pause.

"Uh, he is confused, too much happening, twins, you see. Dar'Zhar-do this one is not your Father, he is your uncle, why is it your Father conspired against this one, Rid-Rawl'vah?"

"Huh? Uh, right. This one does not know. Dar'Zhar-do can go now, yes?"

Once again another long pause.

"He may have just been caught up in it, you see. Dar'Zhar-do, this one does not think you are as guilty as these others are. If you can prove your loyalty to Rid-Rawl'vah he will forget your involvement in this assassination attempt."

"Right, whatever. What do you need?"

"A simple task. You see there is still one assassin alive in this room, Jo'azha's daughter, Khinashi. This one would not put a child to death, but she has assaulted this one directly, and such treasonous actions must be responded to with death. She cannot be allowed to live. Kill her, and you will have your freedom."

Kill her, and you will have your freedom.

Those words sparked what little remaining energy Khinashi still had in her. Ra-Zara'chi is so cruel that he would not see to her death himself, but have his son, this one's old friend, Dar'Zhar-do do it for him. Why? Dar'Zhar-do would not do this, would he?

This one opens her eyes to see Dar'Zhar-do and his father speaking. Next to them is a line of guardsman all holding one of the assassins found from the carriage. They all wear black clothing with veiled hoods, and Dar'Zhar-do wears one such the same as well.

"What? You mean-"

"Did this one not make himself clear, Dar'Zhar-do?"

"Yes, Fa- Uncle. Er, but why? Perhaps she just, 'got caught up' in this too, yes?"

"Does this look like she did not assault this one?" The 'Mane' holds out his hand that strangled Khinashi, it is drenched in blood and torn apart, with fingers limp and unmoving. It does not look like something he could recover from so easily, even with magic or potions.

"Ah, well, perhaps it was just an acc-"

Rid-Rawl'vah forcefully hands a sword to Dar'Zhar-do, making him grasp it.

"Do this and you will prove your loyalty to me. Do not, and you will not see the light of day from your time in jail, and she will die anyway."

Wordlessly, Dar'Zhar-do nods, and walks forward to this one. He does not look this one in the eyes as he approaches, and unbridled fury begins to build in this one's veins. He would do this. Ra-Zara'chi has killed the mane, killed father and Do'hasrandru, impersonated the mane and made his father a villain to the eyes of the public, and he has turned his son, Khinashi's old friend, against this one.

But it will all be over in a moment anyway. This one does not care anymore, but she will not let that snivelling, arrogant Dar'Zhar-do do this without even looking at the one he is about to murder.

He approaches this one and stops a few feet away, and raises the sword. Still he evades this one's glare. Now it is too much for her to not say anything about it.

"Look at this one, Dar'Zhar-do!"

"No."

"Is that all you can say? You brim with confidence, normally, where is that confidence now? Are you afraid?"

"No."

"Then look at this one, look at Khinashi! There is no easy way out of this, face up to it, if you are brave enough! Can you kill a friend in cold blood, Dar'Zhar-do? Is that who you are now?"

Finally his eyes stare into this one.

"No!"

Suddenly everything is happening so quick that Khinashi is not able to think things through properly.

The sound of the sword Dar'Zhar-do was wielding hits the floor, followed by the sound of the doors to the palace being shoved open again. Everyone else turns their heads to see the intruder, but this one sees him clearly already. It is Jahirr. What is he doing here?

But this one does not waste any time on the thought. In the few seconds during the distraction that his enrance causes, this one kicks Dar'Zhar-do back across the room, readies herself up and grabs her staff.

Earlier Khinashi did not want to cast fire spells for the worry that it would burn the palace down, but upon what she has witnessed now, she does not care, she does not care about anything. The fury and rage that burns within her is taking over, and now that is exactly what she intends to do.

"Ahziss zregese jer wo ako!" Khinashi shouts.

The guards not burdened with holding assassins run toward her to stop her, but this one uses her staff to cut a line of fire that they cannot breach without risk of singing themselves.

She casts fireballs at the curtains, at the door, at the walls, at everything.

This one even focuses her energy on summoning a Flame atronach, for it does not matter anymore if her concentration wavers, nothing matters.

The fire spreads, and soon people realize it better to escape than to risk their death here. Khinashi backs up until there is no room left to move, she feels she may be at a window but cannot risk turning around to check, for the flames are surrounding her now.

Then out of nowhere, between the fires and the escaping guards, Jahirr leaps over flame to get to her.

Then this one realizes he is not slowing down upon his approach.

"Jahirr? What are you-"

This one drops her staff and raises her hands to defend herself as he leaps toward her. Khinashi loses her balance and feels herself toppling over the window behind her, and then realizes she is falling far longer than she would have expected.

She looks up and sees the palace in the distance, and the edge of the cliff it overhangs on, as the rest of the flames devour it.

And suddenly her thoughts are dismissed as the world around her changes and she finds herself underwater in the Xylo river, with Jahirr splashing down soon after her.

With the adrenaline of the events over she finds her pain and exhaustion returning to her, and she merely floats on her back on the water, lost in thought. What had gotten over her? She had nearly lost complete control of herself, and nearly burned herself alive. But then, perhaps it allowed Jahirr the chance to save her. This one does not know, and, right now she does not care to think about it. Khinashi is alive.

She does not pay much attention to the fact that Jahirr soon drags her out of the water and on the shore. Nor does she think much of the fact of him pushing her on his back as he runs off into the forests. This one is just barely concious enough to register the events happening at all, and to hold on and not fall off.

After awhile of running she notices Ma'krin and nearby a very damaged plow no longer tied to his back, and takes note of the fact that for once he is not asleep.

Jahirr, with Khinashi on her back and Ma'krin following close behind, continue travelling in the forests, to what destination this one does not know. Off in the distance the bright flame that is the palace glows against the cloudy night sky, behind which the moons must be hiding.

Where Jahirr is taking her now, or why, this one does not know, and she is too tired to ask, but right now, any place is safer than home. Somehow she is still alive, but...

The same cannot be said for Father.

Now the weariness is overwhelming, and Khinashi lets herself drift into unconsciousness.


	7. Chapter 6: The Pride of Portneu (P1)

**Chapter 6: The Pride of Portneu (Part 1)**

"Father, where do we go when we die?" Khinashi asks, resting her head against the cool grass she lays on.

Father looks lost in thought at the question, looking to the sky as the sunset begins and the moons fade into view. We decided to rest a bit before walking back home after a long day of magic training, and this was always the best time to ask him questions.

"What a strange question, Khinashi. Why do you ask?"

"This one read a book about how some races have an afterlife, like how the Nords go to a place called Sovngarde, the Redguards go to the Far Shores, and some followers of certain gods go to different places. Where do we Khajiit go to when we die?"

"Elsewhere." Father says, smiling.

"Well yeah, but where else?" This one says with a hint of frustration at the non-answer.

"Elsewhere." He repeats, acting like this one should know what he means.

"What? We go to somewhere in Elsweyr?" This one is completely confused as to what he means. Father laughs and pats this one on the shoulder.

"Do you know why our land is called Elsweyr, Khinashi?"

"Because someone thought it would be funny?"

"Hmm. Perhaps, but not quite. You know the land used to be divided, right? The northern desert lands were known as Anequina, and the southern rain forests, where we live, was called-"

"Pelletine. Yes Father, this one does read your books, you know...Keirgo of Anequina and Eshita of Pelletine married and combined their kingdoms and called the land Elsweyr."

"Yes, but do you know why they chose that name?"

"No, why? The book never said that part."

"In our old tongue of Ta'agra, there was once an old proverb Khajiit used, mostly as a sarcastic remark to show their distaste for their current state of affairs. It was...after translation, something along the lines of how, 'A perfect society is always found elsewhere.' A way of saying that, where ever you go, no place is perfect. It just so happened to be that Keirgo and Eshita were quite fond of proverbs."

"So you mean they named it 'Elsweyr' after that? As in to mean it would become a perfect society?"

"Yes, they were quite optimistic about their union. Although, their people at the time didn't seem to share that optimism, considering their union was immediately followed with civil war..."

"Hah, that is quite funny, this one never knew that. But...what does that have to do with Khinashi's question at all? Where do we go when we die, Father?"

"Elsewhere."

"Urgh, can you just stop-wait...this one sees now. So you mean to say we go somewhere that is perfect, then?"

"Hah, that's what the Clan Mothers would tell you, yes. Really it's more like a dream-like place that changes based on your perception – and the Clan Mothers believe that perception is based on what you want to see - it's shared by many but looks different to most. Some have said it's a place with endless sands made out of Moon Sugar in their visions, others have seen it as a rain forest of tall trees made out of Moon Sugar stalks, and that all of the water of the lakes and rivers are made of sweet milk. Whatever the magic of the place allows for a great deal of things to happen, they even say if you know how, you can change your form to become any type of Khajiit at will. It all sounds like something someone came up with during a bad sugar trip, right?"

"It sounds like a paradise for Ma'krin. Does this place have a name, then?"

"Well, that depends - it's been a matter of debate actually, Khinashi. Depending on who you believe, it could go by many names – names we use for other things - or none at all. No one really knows where it is or what it's called, but for the purpose of referring to the concept of the afterlife itself, most Khajiit have taken to calling it "Llesw'er" out of the same vein of humour that our land was named from."

"So we go to Llesw'er then, that is what this one will call it too, when she grows up and goes off on adventures to fight villains like you did. 'See you in Llesw'er, scum!' Khinashi will say valiantly as she casts her spells."

Father laughs again at this. "I'd hope you wouldn't be fighting anyone that would have the privilege of going there or you might be the villain, Khinashi. It's not a place for all Khajiit, only those who have earned it in life, or so the Clan Mothers say."

"Hmm, will you go there when you...die, Father?" The words were a bit hard to say, for this one did not like to think of her father being dead, but if she knew he would be going to a paradise, then it would help to know.

Father frowns, as if thinking back on his life, what he has done and accomplished, what he is proud of, and what he regrets.

"There's no way to tell for sure until it's time, Khinashi, but...I would like to think so."

"Will this one be able to talk to you from here to there?"

"It's true some have said they are able to speak to spirits who have passed on under the right circumstances, but never for idle chat, and it's not exactly an easy thing to accomplish."

"How do you do it, Father? This one wants to know so...just in case, yes?"

"Ah, don't worry about that, Khinashi. Even if it should ever come to pass, well, spirits have ways of looking back down to Nirni to watch over the living. I'll always be there for you, even if you can't see or hear me, always remember that. Still, how about we talk about something else and I'll just do my best to avoid letting it come to that, deal?"

"Deal."

* * *

This one opens her eyes from her dream, it was not really a dream but a memory long ago, one she never wanted to have to recall back to think of.

Khinashi sighs deeply, she hopes Father made it to Llesw'er, or where ever our honored dead go. He deserves it...but he did not deserve to die.

Khinashi feels wet fur all about her eyelids, she must have been crying in her sleep. The Moon Sugar wax about her body has dried up and become crusty, and...there is a strange feeling about her mouth? This one moves her head up to see her surroundings, and feels her muzzle. Upon doing so, unbearable pain is sent through her body and she jumps to her feet, hopping and skipping in circles from the pain inside her mouth that stings like a hive of bees stinging rapidly over and over. This one notices Ma'krin looking at her without much surprise, as if he is used to her acting crazy, while he chews on some fish.

Something is missing in her mouth, as if something should be there but no longer is, and whatever it is, is the cause of all the pain.

This one quickly draws up thoughts, magic she learned to ease pain. Yes, healing hands it was called, she had cast the spell once, Father had taught her, she had read the book – but it has been so long...How does she do it?

Khinashi struggles against the pain, closes her eyes and thinks deeply back to her lessons. Yes, this one remembers now. She casts the spell for a second – and the pain in her mouth stops...but now she can no longer feel her mouth at all. This one tries moving her jaw up and down but can only do so partially, and now she feels an extreme cold feeling.

Khinashi looks to her hands and notices the glow from it is blue, not the bright yellow she remembered healing spells to look like.

That was Frostbite she casted...Gah! Frostbite is not useful for anything. This one could not cast magic to save her life.

Nor to save Father's...

Khinashi has learned nothing, and now he is not here to teach her.

This one falls to the ground again and weeps. Why did you do this, Ra-Zara'chi? Why? The Mane was your brother, and Father...he still respected you.

How could this one have left without killing him for what he did, gah! Perhaps he did in the fire, this one can only hope, but knows that to be in vain. He was always one step ahead, he would have escaped... Dark Moons take you, Ra-Zara'chi.

At least she messed up his hand, he may not even be able to use it anymore, but that will be the least of his worries when she finds him again...Ah, it makes sense now...her teeth.

Perhaps this one lost a tooth last night from biting so deep into his hand, she can remember it piercing bone. Khinashi rises a hand to her mouth and confirms her suspicion. She no longer has her front left fang.

Just yesterday she was carving rind from sugar stalks with that tooth, now she will never be able to again for the rest of her life. A tooth for a hand however, perhaps she got the better end of the bargain, no? It could be worse.

It...could be worse, this one thinks. Yes, perhaps it could. She is still alive, and she is...where is she? And the others- where is everyone?

For once this one takes a proper look at her surroundings. She is in a clearing in the forest, she cannot see the sun or time of day for the canopy is too dense here. Ma'krin is nearby eating some fish as he has been since she woke up, and there is a puddle of blood nearby where her mouth was when she was sleeping. She remembers Jahirr bringing her here last night...

"Where is Jahirr, Ma'krin?"

Ma'krin looks up at this one, annoyed for interrupting his meal. He points his head over to a lake in the distance.

"Thanks...And, Ma'krin...Do you know of what happened last night? At the Mane's palace?"

Ma'krin holds his head down, and his eyes seem to start welling up with tears, he covers his eyes with his paws, and grunts. He does not want to talk about it. He knows.

Then Jahirr must know too, for he would have probably explained it to him. Ah, such a strange thing, how the non-speaking Khajiit are still able to communicate complete conversations with each other through complex body and sign language. It is nearly impossible to lie to a four walker, for they can see the smallest nuances to dispel their speaker's true intentions, and the older ones are believed to almost be able to read minds from their talent. Not many speaking Khajiit know their silent language, only those whom have very close bonds with them – for it takes many decades for those with voices to learn, and yet, even an infant Alfiq, Pahmar or Senche can learn it within their first years of life.

This one weeps at the thought...Father was a master at their silent language, due to his time traveling with Jahirr. Father always had a dream to make it become a common practice for all Khajiit to learn, so that communication with them would be more fluent, and allow the four walkers to be more involved in social communities and do things like buy and sell things in marketplaces. Father and Jahirr once taught it at the Temple of Jone and Jode, but not many speaking Khajiit could be bothered to learn it, settling instead for the limited direct question way of communication. To this one's eternal sadness, even Khinashi only knows a little. Not as much as she should.

This one shakes her head from her distraction and runs off to the lake, those thoughts are unimportant right now. Beyond some trees this one sees Jahirr laying next to the water where seeds drop from the branches above into the lake. He repetitively smacks his tail on the ground close to the lake.

"Jahirr, what are you-" this one says as she approaches, with a bit of difficulty from her frozen mouth. Khinashi's words are cut off by a fish jumping out of the water in that moment, as Jahirr smacks it onto the land with his paws, and then ends its dehydrated suffering. He pushes it toward this one and looks Khinashi in the eyes. He expects this one to take it.

"Oh, no thanks Jahirr, this one can wait to eat later when we go back home. We are going home now, yes? Back to the others? We cannot stay out here in the-"

Jahirr interrupts this one with a loud, authoritative, roar in denial in Khinashi's question.

"What? But what about Ra-Zara'chi? We cannot just let him get away with-!"

Jahirr interrupts again, this time with a more warning, low-toned growl, which meant not to keep arguing with him.

"Fine. Where are we going then?"

Jahirr shakes his head and scratches at the ground.

"Sorry. Do you know where you are taking us, then?"

Jahirr nods his head.

Well, that is perhaps the best answer she will get. Jahirr is not one for idle conversation, always focused on the task at hand, which, in this case, this one guesses is watching over Khinashi and Ma'krin while he guides us to where ever he is planning to. This one has no doubt now that he knows more than Khinashi about what happened last night, Father would have told him everything.

At least with the lake here, this one can finally wash off all the Moon Sugar wax, and Jahirr appears to be collecting breakfast for us... What of the others, though? J'shabi, Ma'ketra? Smallpaws? What of Mother, and even Jo'banja? The thought that something bad could have happened to them cannot escape her thoughts. Until she knows for sure, no amount of fish Jahirr catches will ease that hollow feeling from her stomach.

* * *

"Woah! Ma'ketra, slow dow-wah-uh!" I shout, doing a flip over Ma'ketra's head as I land with my back on the ground, straight in the mud.

"Ugh, look what you did! I just washed this yesterday before we left, it's my favorite outfit, too."

I stand up and try to wipe off some of the mud. Some of it comes out, but in some areas it stained, it'll have to be washed. Again.

As I look up I see Smallpaws covering his mouth with his paw, stifling back a snort of a sort – a laugh for an Alfiq. It's hard to read Ma'ketra's expression but she looks guilty, almost.

"Oh, come on. This was your idea wasn't it, Smallpaws?"

He only responds with a smile to me. Ma'ketra turns to him and growls, and they look to each other and do some sort of body and face sign language. It's always so difficult to work out what they're saying to each other without words. The result of their conversation ends with Ma'ketra walking up to me with her head down, in an apologetic manner.

"Fine, I can tell it was Smallpaws's idea but I think I'll walk the rest of the way now, you two are always so hyper when you wake up. Besides, we're close to Portneu View now, we're almost out of the valley."

I turn around and continue walking forward, jumping over some of the deeper mud puddles to avoid getting any dirtier. I really should have thought about borrowing some boots for this, foot wraps alone are terrible for traveling in these conditions. At least the worst of the mud only got on the dark red parts of my clothes instead of the pink fabrics. I'll just have to live with that until we get back to Torval after finding Dagi, where ever he is. By now the others back home will have found my note. If they send anyone for us they'll know where to look, and if not that's just as well, that they'll know where we are is the important part. It wouldn't help anyone to just say we left with no direction or reason as to why.

As we reach the end of the valley we see some houses around the edges, with what looks like a dock built up into it – to allow for transport between Torval and Portneu View with ease during the summer. The rest of the village must just be beyond the bend in the road ahead, behind the wall of trees.

Suddenly, a person dashes out from the cluster of trees and bushes, and instinct readies myself. The person is looking back, and running silently, away from the village, and only after a few seconds turns to face us ahead. He's an Ohmes as well, except one who, like most Ohmes, and sometimes even Tojays, opted to tattoo or paint their faces to look more feline.

I scoff at the thought to myself. If it didn't look so strange to paint my nose black and to have fake whiskers drawn on my cheeks I would have done so too, but even I have to draw the line somewhere with Khajiit traditions.

He runs up to approach us.

"Hey, what are you three doing? You are going the wrong way! Turn around, if you are wise, you do not want to go to Portneu – not now, it is not safe!"

The Ohmes steps to run off again but I grab him by the neck of his shawl before he can, to get his attention.

"Hey, wait! What do you mean it's 'not safe'? A lot of travelers passed through it just fine on the way to the festival in Torval last night."

"Last night? Yesterday? Yes. Now? No, no it is not safe. They came in the morning, just hours ago. This one must go to Torval and call for help." The Ohmes sounds frightened, but I can't let him leave without knowing more.

"Who did? What's happening in Portneu? Slow down and just tell me."

"Renrija dariita! Bandits and thieves who call themselves the Tenmar Claws came into town and took over. They offer us their 'protection' in exchange for payment but protection from what? No thief worth their salt would steal anything from us, we are simple Khajiit – farmers who live on what we grow, with small trade throughout Elsweyr to those who pass through – but these thieves threaten to kill us if we do not pay, and so our Clan Mother is left with no choice. We are not fighters, and cannot stand up to them, and so this one snuck away to call for aid from Torval to rid of them. If you have any sense you will stay away, they do not take kindly to travelers – the last one who came through, a Dagi boy, is now being held hostage and is not allowed to leave."

"Wait...A Dagi boy? Did he have a strange fur pattern – calico coloured?"

"Perhaps? This one does not know. He was wearing northern clothes and a cowl covered his face, Khajiit did not stay around any longer, for his presence distracted them enough for this one to escape. Now this one must go, they may have noticed Khajiit's absence and look for him soon!"

The Ohmes pulls away from my grasp and runs as fast as he can down the path to Torval. It will be many hours before he arrives there on his own feet, and then some more to return with help. If that Dagi is the Dagi we know, we can't just leave him to the mercy of bandits and thieves.

I look down to Ma'ketra and Smallpaws.

"You heard him, that could be Dagi in there who was caught by those bandits! We have to try and help him."

I start walking forward again with a quickened pace, but the sound of whimpering makes me stop and turn around. Ma'ketra hasn't moved, and Smallpaws looks confused at her.

"What is it, Ma'ketra? Is something wrong?"

Ma'ketra shakes her head, then shrugs. She walks around in a circle and turns her head to face the other way.

"What? You mean you don't want to go into Portneu?"

Ma'ketra shakes her head. Smallpaws leaps off of Ma'ketra and turns to face her, after some more sign language Paws walks up to stand by me.

"Oh, don't be such a scaredy-Khajiit, Ma'ketra, if we stick together I'm sure we'll be fine. You can outrun any bandit any day I'm sure, even if some of them are Pahmar or Senche, or have Senche-Tigers with them. You were always the fastest Khajiit in Torval."

Ma'ketra groans again and plants her feet into the ground, showing she's not going to change her mind.

"Fine, you don't have to come with us if you don't want to, but I'm not going to leave Dagi by himself if he's in danger."

Smallpaws meowed with a sarcastic tone as he rolls his eyes.

"What? I'm sure it's him, Paws. You are coming with me, right?"

To this, Paws began running forward on the path to Portneu, and so I run after to catch up. I look back to Ma'ketra one more time, who looks sad and regretful. I call out for her to stay safe, and then turn back to Smallpaws ahead.

* * *

This one ducks her head beneath the twigs and bushes that threaten to take out her eyes as Jahirr rides ever onward, and Ma'krin struggles to keep up, for Ma'krin may be very strong from all that he eats, but he is not normally fast unless he is in a sugar fit or a bad temper from waking up. We are on the main road north of Torval, Khinashi can tell, and yet Jahirr swings sporadically and wildly close to the edges where the trees are dense, to check for clues toward where ever his destination is. He has sniffed the ground, tasted leaves from bushes and looked for footprints.

Khinashi is not good at tracking, but she knows enough about it from her studies of the Pahmar, the greatest hunting form of Khajiit, and knows this to be all a methodological procedure for finding someone, not something or somewhere. Where ever we are going, it is to find someone, but who? And why? This one has not a clue to who it may be, for everyone else would be at home in Torval, would they not?

* * *

As Smallpaws and I walk into the village, it quickly becomes clear that the Ohmes wasn't kidding. Everyone wears an expression of fear and anxiety on their faces, except the bandits themselves.

There aren't many of the bandits, only half a dozen that I can see outside. Two standing by the door that appears to be the village Inn, a couple wandering about the village, and two more talking to an elegantly dressed Suthay female, most likely the Clan Mother. The villagers outnumber them many times, but I can tell none of them seem to know anything about combat, nor do they have any weapons. They wear the simple garbs of Tenmar Khajiit, like me and most in Torval, but the bandits are wearing northern desert clothes...and some Senche-tiger furs lined about for more protection. Bah, the sight of it makes me want to puke, is their own fur not enough?

The houses here are just a bit above the ground, instead of high up on platform bridges like in Torval, aside from the port just outside of the village near the entrance to the valley. All the rain must slide down, so they don't have to worry so much about floods, despite still being in the Tenmar forest.

Aside from the Inn, there's about a dozen or so other houses lay about, with a lot of Fields and crops growing in them, even some fruit trees. The entire village exists in an unnatural clearing, but the villagers don't seem to have cleared it in any recent generations, so it must be pretty old.

As we go deeper into the village, I notice one of the bandits stepping near the path I had entered from, and it didn't take much to figure out he meant he wouldn't be letting me back out of it. But that isn't important right now.

"Hey, do you know if you saw what colour fur the Dagi boy had that the bandits captured? Or where they have him?" I say to one of the villagers who is working on one of their crop fields.

The elderly Cathay Khajiit looks up to me with sadness in his face, and darts quickly over to various bandits to see if he's being watched, and then looks down again.

"Hey, come on it's important, just tell me if you've seen a calico coloured Dagi boy."

The farmer turns away and walks on the far side of the field to continue his harvesting. Clearly he wasn't going to be any help.

I look down to Smallpaws and shake my head, but just then the argument between whom I guess is the Clan Mother, and some of the bandits becomes louder.

I look over and see another bandit climbing out of an open window from a house and joining the other two. The Clan Mother looks distressed and desperate, pleading them about something, but the bandits turn away and walk into the Inn past the two bandits guarding the door. That must be where they set up their headquarters for the village's 'protection' payment.

If anyone knows much about what's going on, or about the Dagi boy they captured, it must be the Clan Mother. As Smallpaws and I approach her we hear the sounds of sobbing, and I make sure to walk slowly so as to not scare her. Maybe it's better to wait until she takes notice of us before saying anything.

"This one said she needs more time before coming to a decision! Can you not understand that? Oh- you do not look like bandits, but Dra'muzi does not recognize you, you are travelers then yes? You have picked a bad time to come to this village."

"Sort of, yes, we came from Torval-"

"Ah, from Torval? Bright moons! This one did not expect help to arrive so soon when S'dran said he would escape to call for aid. Although, really it has not been long...and this one did not expect the aid to be in the form of a young Ohmes girl and an Alfiq. There are more of you, yes?"

"Umm...sorry, but no, just us, and we didn't come from Torval to help with the bandits, we didn't even know about them until we almost got here, I guess that was S'dran we saw on the way. We're here looking for a Calico coloured Dagi boy, we know a Dagi is being held captive by the bandits here, does he match that description?"

"Oh, so you are not here to help then... Yes, the Dagi boy had strangely coloured fur, the boy came to town before the bandits did and was asking about some people, and when the bandits arrived he thought to try and help by attempting to persuade their leader to leave, but before he could even say a word they had him tied up. Apparently some people are looking for him, and the bandits hope to exchange him for ransom."

Hmm, people looking for Dagi? Well, we are, but if the bandits are from the north, then it can't have been any of us from Torval that told them about him. Who else would be looking for him?

"Do you know where he's being held at?"

"In the Inn, where their leader is – the long house in the center of the village. You will not be able to get in there, though, the two bandits by the door do not let us in, that is where most of the bandits reside. Be wise, child, this one does not know your relation to this Dagi, but he is not worth throwing your life away for."

"But he's my friend, I'm not going to let him be sold as ransom to someone, I don't even know who they are. I have to try and do something..."

As I finished my sentence, my eyes drifted away, I had called him a friend, even though I only knew him for a short time, he might not even remember my name. Why is it that I cared so much about protecting him? So what if he might share a semblance of my past, is that enough to warrant risking my life? But then again, it would be nice to know someone who might understand...

I walk away and notice Smallpaws looking up at me as if wondering if I know what I'm doing, in truth, I don't, but there has to be a way past those bandits. Hmph, if only Khinashi were here, I know she'd be able to think of something...

No. I can do this without her help.

Staring at the two bandits by the door makes me realize how weak they seem, I could probably take them in a fight if it weren't for their weapons. They don't particularly look at all focused on their job, more a bit bored and resting against the wall of the house. Maybe I could convince them their leader was expecting me? Maybe they won't even care if I walk in, if I just look like I'm meant to be there.

Going for the more natural, forceful look, I focus on the door and walk steadily toward it, not looking at either of the bandits. If I do they would suspect something.

It works.

Up until I reach the stairs near the door, at which point one of them shoves me back against the ground.

"No one is allowed inside, boss's orders." One of the bandits say.

"Uh, the boss is expecting me, actually. I have some important things to talk about with him, so if you'll just let me-"

I get shoved back again against the ground upon trying to walk through the door again.

"Nice try, but you are not getting in. Now shove off."

Hmm, perhaps an even more forceful approach is necessary...

"Hey! I'll have you know I'm a personal friend of your leader, and that he himself invited me inside for a local variety of special drinks and delicacies, and that he would be very upset if his good friend was being kept outside by two of his guards, he might even fire you for it."

"Oh really? Then you would know his name then at least, no?"

"Uh, well, we always just used nicknames, see-"

The two guards, apparently now annoyed at my fruitless attempts to trick them, look to each other and simultaneously put their hands at their scabbards.

"Wait!" The Clan Mother's voice roars out, as she runs in between me and the bandit guards.

"This one apologizes for this girl's behaviour, she will keep her in check so that she does not bother you anymore. This does not have to come to bloodshed."

"See to it that it does not, then." One of the bandits reply.

The Clan Mother pulls me away from the guards, far enough that we're out of earshot.

"You must be very brave or very foolish to walk up to them and talk to them like that. Either or it does not matter, you are too hard-headed, but then...perhaps that is just what we need right now, but not by itself. If this one cannot convince you to stay out of their way, then perhaps we could help each other out."

"I'm not going to sit around and let Dagi be at the mercy of those bandits."

"Of course, this one can see that now, but what exactly were you planning to do once – and if – you got passed those bandit guards, hmm?"

"Well, I would have...I don't know actually, I would have thought of something, though."

"So you would have walked right into a den of bandits with no plan whatsoever then...This one is leaning towards foolishness...There is no way to avoid conflict if you intend to free the Dagi, but do you know how to fight? You do not even have a weapon."

"Where I come from, we don't need weapons."

"Hmm, a student of the dance, then? This one guesses. Mages do not tend to be so...direct. Perhaps that will be enough."

"Be enough?"

"If your determination is of any indication of your skill then this one thinks you could just very well defeat their leader. These bandits are so low in their hierarchy that they must attack a poor, defenceless village – do not mistake this for Dra'muzi insulting their lack of honor, that is to be expected – but quite plainly, most bandits would see our village as not worth the trouble, and would seek more lucrative investments of time. Still, this one doubts you could take all of them on at the same time, and not with their weapons. So then we just have to make sure they do not use them and that you only fight their leader."

"Right...Well that doesn't sound so easy anymore, if I just up and attacked their leader the rest would probably jump in, and they'd have no reason to not use weapons."

"So you see wisdom at last. It can be done, however, if you approach the situation with subtly and wit."

"I think this is the part where you come in, then..."

"Indeed. None here, save for you, have the skill to challenge them, but without the wit, you would never get the chance. How long have you been in Elsweyr? For this one can tell you were not raised here by your way of speaking."

"I'm not an elf-! Sorry...Habit. Only three years, why?"

"This one does not know what bandits may be like in other lands, but she has heard tales. Here in Elsweyr however, most Khajiit renrija are...different. Like most bandits they do not have a sense of honor- but more importantly, they do not have a sense of pride."

"And why is that important to know?"

"Outside of Elsweyr, most vagabonds you may come across would fight to the death, or seek revenge if their friend or ally is killed, or be provoked with insults to their person or family relations. Things are different here in Elsweyr, they are much more practical. They seek only personal gain, and avoid death at all costs, for death means they lose all they own. They do not care about anything else. Nothing. They do not care if you insult them or their mother, their only incentive to fight is the end reward. If a fight is turning ugly and they are not sure the risk is worth the reward any longer, they will flee, even if their best friend is lying dead or in trouble nearby."

"Okay, I can see how that might be helpful to know, but-"

"This one is not finished. There is an exception to this, sort of, and that is the leaders of these bandit gangs. They have a sense of pride, and to an extent, honor, but only as far as its practical use goes- and that is to instill fear and respect from their underlings, for if they cannot do that, then there is nothing stopping any of the bandits from turning on their leader if it means they would get more reward out of it. If a leader shows weakness, he will not be a leader for much longer."

"Hmm, so if I challenge the leader, he would have to accept or risk looking weak in front of his gang, which could be disastrous for him."

"Quite right, but it is not so simple. If you were to challenge him normally he would just have his bandits make quick work of you, for the bandits would see the practicality in this and see that as a strength in mind, not a weakness in skill. You have to give him reason to want to fight you himself, in one on one combat, with no weapons. Then there is also the matter of getting past the door guards to issue such a challenge in the first place."

"And you lost me again...how do I do all of that?"

"Listen and this one will tell you. You too Alfiq, for you may be able to help with this as well. It will take skill, patience, and some luck, but we may be able to make it out of this landing on our feet like Khajiit are supposed to."


	8. Chapter 7: The Pride of Portneu (P2)

**Chapter 7: The Pride of Portneu (Part 2)**

Already these clothes are starting to itch, and it makes the heat almost unbearable. What is it with villains and their obsessions with dark clothing?

The black shawl, hood, wrap over my eyes- cut to allow me to see- gloves, boots, and a bandanna over my mouth should be enough to pass as a...well, someone who would be interested in joining their gang, but that's if I don't die of heat stroke before even making it there.

I went over what to do in my mind several times, and Smallpaws is ready for his part. This would be a lot easier if Ma'ketra were nearby in case things turn ugly, but this will have to do. Dagi is counting on me, even if he doesn't know it, and so is Clan Mother Dra'muzi, and everyone of Portneu View. It has to work.

I step out from the Clan Mother's house and bare the heat all the way alongside Smallpaws as we approach the two door guards.

"Oh, it is you again. Do not think that we cannot see through your disguise, girl-"

"Oh, don't worry, I knew you'd recognize me. You're too smart to fall for something like that, I just decided to change my wardrobe a bit, doesn't it look nice?"

"We are not letting you in."

C'mon, J'shabi, remember the script. Just stick to it and you'll be fine.

"The Clan Mother has decided to take up your leader's offer and has given me the amount of Moon Sugar you requested. There will be more for next week's payment as well." I say, and quickly toss a bag full of Moon Sugar toward one of the guards.

"Then the Clan Mother has made a wise-"

"But, I was thinking...Not all of that Moon Sugar goes to your leader, right? You get to eat some of it as well, yeah?"

"Some of it. It is portioned out to everyone, and the boss gets the largest split."

"You two get a large split too, though, right? I mean, having to stand around guarding a door all day has to be pretty boring. The others are all inside probably drinking and playing games while you're out here, standing. For hours. Doing nothing."

"Hmm, perhaps we should get more..."

"And you've done a great job of it so far, too – I should know. You've stopped me from getting inside several times already, 'the boss' should be more grateful for that."

"That is true."

"So how about this, since you two have done such a great job keeping order around here, I'll give you a tip – free of charge – two bags of Moon Sugar, each half the size of the portion for your boss, and you both can keep it all to yourselves."

I take out two more bags of sugar and toss one to each of them.

"And while you're enjoying your snack, I'll go have a chat with your boss and talk about giving you a raise for your hard work."

I step forward onto the stairs to walk in the Inn, but as I do a hand falls down on my shoulder, preventing access.

"This is clearly just a trick to get us to let you in, we are not stupid."

But I didn't hesitate to respond.

"Sharp as ever, you caught me. You also should know then, that if you tell the boss about the extra Moon Sugar I gave you, he'll demand that to be added to the split and he'll get even more, and you'll get less. You were just off chasing someone who was trying to escape town- and thus threaten your entire operation here, and I'm just a little Ohmes about to walk into a den of bandits, he'll understand."

The two bandits look to each other for a second, and start running off to hide and enjoy their sugar.

Well, it worked, so that's one step done. Now I just have to open this door and walk into a den of armed bandits and somehow turn this whole fiasco into a happy ending. If not a happy one, however, it will be the end of something either way.

I take a deep breath, look over to Smallpaws who's ready to sneak through a window with invisibility, and walk inside.

The disgusting smell of skooma fills the room, and most of the bandits are all sitting around talking, playing card games, or some game that involves a knife stabbing a table in between their fingers. As I walk in all of the talking stops, everyone turns to face me and several swords are drawn. I see Dagi tied up in a chair near whom I would guess is their leader, wearing the head of a sabre cat. Bleh.

"Who are you? This one told the guards not to let anyone in!"

"What guards? There was no one by the door when I came in."

"What! Did they run off again? Damn it!"

"Sounds like some of your gang members are pretty lazy."

With that, the ones who had swords drawn took a few steps closer to me, surrounding me in a circle. A drop of sweat starts to roll down my forehead, stay calm, J'shabi. It's all part of the script.

The bandit leader holds a hand up to stop the others, and approaches me.

"And who are you then, to just walk in here and call my members lazy? Someone with a death wish?"

"Someone who's heard quite a lot about you, Do-harajo, and the Tenmar Claws – from the underground society of course - and I have to say, I'm impressed. Taking over Portneu View without any opposition? The people fear you."

Adding 'Do' to his name was of my own innovation, for this challenge to work, he had to not see me as an enemy but a potential ally.

"Ah, so you have heard of this one, then? Caught this kid earlier today too, heard of some guys looking for him that will pay big money. But why are you really here? Surely you did not come all this way because you were impressed."

"Quite so. I'm on the run from Valenwood after pulling a few jobs there and was looking to join up with you guys."

"Oh, Valenwood huh? That is Dominion territory is it not? Not sure this one wants the Thalmor after us."

"Perhaps I should demonstrate my worth to your gang, then? I'm quite skilled in hand to hand combat."

"Hmm. Suppose so. Big 'Do over there could sprawl with you, the grey Suthay-"

"Actually, I was hoping to get the chance to fight with the legendary Do-harajo himself. See how many seconds I could last, you know?"

The Cathay leader looks uninterested in the challenge at first, but I hear some murmurs and laughs about the room from his gang members, and I know he hears them too, and since he hears them, he knows he can't risk denying the challenge and looking weak. After he looks side to side for something to confirm his decision, he looks back to me and stands up.

"Very well."

With those words, suddenly everyone in the Inn starts pushing chairs and tables aside to make room for the fight. I move over toward one side while Do-harajo takes the opposite. I can see that Dagi recognizes me, and looks utterly confused, but he can't speak as his mouth is wrapped up, still tied to a chair.

"Do not think this one will go easy on you, Ohmes, this will be over in seconds."

"We'll see about that."

"First to tap out, the other wins. No weapons, no spells, no crying."

"Works for me."

I ready my stance and take some deep breaths to prepare me for the fight. If I can take out the leader, the others will fold, and if things turn ugly, Smallpaws is ready to jump in.

With that, the sound of a bell rung by one of the gang members, and the fight begins.

The Cathay runs toward me with a shout, pulling his arm back for a heavy blow, but he is slow – it's a simple matter to step to the side, grab his arm and pull it behind his back, bringing him to his knees.

I try kicking him in the face next, the finisher to this move set, but just before my foot reaches him, he ducks and grabs my leg, pushing it up which topples me onto the ground on my back.

He dives toward me on the ground with his fist, but I roll out of the way in time, making him punch the floor with all his force and hurt his knuckles. He growls in pain, and with that a few of the onlooking bandits begin murmuring amongst themselves. This seems to only add more fuel to the fire, he can't allow himself to look weak to them.

"What is the matter, Ohmes, cannot take a hit, can you?"

I ignore his taunt and stay focus. I can't push him too far or he might do something drastic, it has to be a clear cut victory with a fast ending.

He runs toward me again with more speed and ferocity this time, aiming for quick weak blows rather than strong forceful ones. These are something I can block. I hold up my arms and position them to reduce the impact. He keeps hitting over and over, but I'm not feeling any pain this way – he's just wearing himself out.

Now is my chance to finish this – If I do it now it will be quick enough.

During the few seconds he has to recover from being worn out, I take an uppercut at his chin to prepare for a kick to launch him into the tables and walls to knock him out.

The uppercut goes well, but when I spin around to bring my back foot into his chest, he manages to recover quick enough and grabs my shoulders and slams his forehead into mine, dazing me.

I feel the wind being knocked out of me as I'm punched to the ground. He must have a really thick head or has taken a lot of hits to the head to be able to recover from that uppercut so quickly.

I get back into my train of thought right as the Cathay is lunging toward me on the ground again – this time with his elbow, but I bring up my feet before he can reach me and jam them into his stomach, and push him up and over the front of me.

We both get up at the same time and start circling each other, each waiting for the other to make their move.

If he has such a thick skull, knocking him out might prove difficult. He'll need to take some heavy shots first before the finishing move, Whispering Claw won't cut it, I'll have to try some of the few Goutfang moves I know. He seems to be in a defensive position, so I run toward him and feint a move to his right, forcing him to throw his weight in that direction, while I spin on my other foot and jump in the air, twirling and bringing my arm around for a heavy swing to his face.

The spinning confuses him, and it hits home, and I hear a crunch as my fist plants into his cheek and knocks him off balance. It looks more like a dance move, but the spinning is the only way for a smaller Khajiit to get enough momentum for the strike to be effective, since for him, his head isn't a weak spot.

I roll as I land to catch my balance, and bring my knee up to his neck as I jump up, before he can recover, which knocks him to the ground completely. He's almost out.

But this isn't a good position for any finishing move I'm trained in, kicking is the only way I've successfully flung people across the room, but while he's laying down that won't do any good. It calls for a certain Goutfang grapple, except I don't think I have the strength to perform it properly, but it's the only thing I can think of for this situation, so I'll have to try it anyway.

I stand at his stomach before he returns to his state of mind and heft him up on my shoulders, which nearly threatens to collapse me. I grab ahold of his legs and spin around, letting him drop to the floor as momentum allows me to swing him full circle. Once. Twice, and on the third time I let go, flinging him across the room and into the wall, but he doesn't make it all the way and smashes a table nearby it. Dang, I wasn't strong enough! That didn't even hit his head!

The room is full of laughter at the stunt – a small Ohmes girl swinging around their leader and smashing tables must be a hilarious sight, except it didn't finish it, and now he'll be infuriated.

Do'Horajo holds a hand to his head as he rises, growling from the pain and no longer amused by the fight.

His other hand falls to the sword clasp at his side.

"Haha, did you see that! She just flung 'im around like nothin'. Boss is having trouble with a little girl, fellas. Maybe we need a new-"

The bandits words are cut short as a sword is driven into his stomach. All laughter in the inn stops. The leader killed one of his own bandits to maintain the fear the others have of him.

"Kill her!"

For a couple seconds there is nothing but silence. The leader roars out even louder.

"This one said kill her! Or Horajo will kill you all as well!"

The other bandits – whom need no confirmation of the truth of his words since he just killed one of them for making a joke – all draw their swords simultaneously and circle around me.

But before any of them can strike, an extremely loud screech – that similar to a raging Senche-raht – pierces everyone's ears in the room, and all except for me and Do'horajo, hold their hands to their ears as an unnatural fear overtakes them.

Suddenly the sword from the Do'horajo's grip flies out from his hands and over to me, and I grab it.

"What is this? What is going on? What have you done to Horajo's gang?" Do'horajo says as he watches his gang run about the room screaming at nothing.

"Wasn't me." I say, speaking the truth, but I can't help but let a smile across my face.

Do'horajo, now growling with fury, punches one of the unnaturally scared bandits and takes their sword from them, and lunges toward me.

"This one will kill you himself!"

Our swords clash and cling amongst the chaos of the Inn. I've always hated using weapons – weapons are made to kill, and I don't want to kill. I'll just have to parry his swings until I can find a way to end this fight some other way. These swords aren't like the scimitars I trained with back in Hammerfell years ago, but the maneuvers seem similar enough. It will have to be enough.

* * *

This one tries to close her eyes and drift into sleep again but Jahirr is running too fast, and it takes much effort just to hold on and not fall off. Somehow all the riding is making Khinashi tired, even though she is not walking or running herself.

Poor Ma'krin is just panting like mad now, out of breath, we have been running non-stop for some time. Jahirr must think we are close to our destination now and wants to hurry – we did not even stop to talk to the Ohmes who was running from the other direction, despite Khinashi's protests, wanting to see what he might have said.

By now we are nearly out of the valley our city resides in. This one looks up and can see the docks of a nearby village in the distance. Portneu View, this one thinks it was called? The docks do not get much use in this time of the year, naturally, it looks abandoned.

There is another Khajiit off the side of the road ahead. The first we saw since the Ohmes earlier, this one will try and convince Jahirr to speak to them this time. Looks like a young Senche, female judging by the lack of mane. Spotted, dark brown fur. Huh, looks quite like Ma'ketra actually.

Wait. That is Ma'ketra!

* * *

Do'Horajo's strength and anger is making defending from his attacks a tiring procedure. He's pushing me around the room, and I have to watch where I step to not bump into a chair, or Dagi, or one of the screaming bandits. That fear spell sure lasts a long time...

I'm at a loss of what to do, I've tried disarming him several times but I never was able to perform that move right back in Hammerfell, not with a weapon in my hand at least, and it's my only defence against his own blade so I need it, even if I don't intend to use it myself. Perhaps it would be easier just to kill him...but no, I don't do that.

I'm running out of time, I may not have a choice much longer...

But my thoughts stop there when suddenly my head bumps into the wall, and I feel a blade slashing along the length of my arm, not deep, but enough to draw blood and make me drop my weapon. Pain streaks through my body and I can't help but scream from it. An arm plants itself on my shoulder preventing me from moving. I let my thoughts drift too far away and forgot to change directions again. This is it, I missed my chance. It's over.

"Say your prayers, little Ohmes." The bandit leader says, drawing back his blade arm for the final strike to end my life.

I close my eyes and wait for it. I'm sorry, Dagi, I thought I could save you, but I couldn't even save myself.

But the blade never came.

"Agh! What in the-"

The hand on my shoulder pulls away and I hear the sword Do'Horajo had drop to the ground. I open my eyes...And see that a bucket of water is tipped upside down on his head, with an angry Smallpaws biting at his legs. He falls to the ground and pulls the bucket up enough to see.

"You stupid Alfiq! You were the one who cast those spells!"

Smallpaws releases his grip and leaps to run off, but Do'Horajo grabs him by the tail before he can make his escape and grabs him by the throat, and extends his claws, preparing to stab him. The fear spell wears off at the same time from Smallpaws's lack of concentration, and the other gang members take a few moments to understand what's happening.

But now I've made my choice, because sometimes you can't avoid it.

Before the claws reach Smallpaws's throat, a sword embeds itself into Do'Horajo's, ending his life, and allowing Smallpaws to escape.

I drop to my knees, throwing it had taken a lot of effort, and pain from my bleeding arm.

The bandits, now aware of their consciousness, look to me, and then to their leader, and back to me, and to the sword sticking out of their leader's throat.

And then they run.

I heave myself up and walk over to Dagi to cut him loose.

"C'mon Dagi, lets get out of here!"

"Thanks, but...Why did you come here in the first place...J'shabi, was it?"

"What do you mean why? To save you of course, do I need a reason other than that?"

"Well this one is grateful, so Khinashi must have told you why this one left then, yes?"

"No...Wait, you mean Khinashi knew-"

My sentence is cut short as I hear screams coming from outside the Inn. Dagi, Smallpaws and I run outside to the door and hear the sound of flames roaring up. I look up and see that the roof of the Inn is now on fire, and a quick glance around shows that several other houses too, are burning. What? Why did the bandits do this?

Focus on the fires, J'shabi.

A well, yes, there's one in the middle of town-

I run towards it but a bandit beats me there and pulls out a knife to cut the rope, dropping the bucket far out of reach, and then runs away with an evil grin.

"They cut the rope!" I shout, and Clan Mother Dra'muzi runs nearby.

"Do not worry, child, there are more ropes in the storehouse over...there..." Her sentence dies out when she realizes the storehouses entrance is now on fire.

Smallpaws jumps up on the wells edge and tries levitating the bucket at the bottom to bring it up.

"Good thinking, Smallpaws, but I don't think that will be enough..."

"There is a lake nearby, this one will grab some others and bring buckets there to fill them."

"But will you be able to get back in time?" I ask.

"This one does not know..."

I look over to the bandits, and see a group of them hefting a lot of objects onto one of their wooden carts drawn by Senche-tigers.

"Hey! What are they doing?" I shout.

"Taking everything worth taking of course...But we must focus on the fires, if we cannot put them out, then it does not matter how much they took, for it is all over then." The Clan Mother says, as she makes way to gather others to run to the lake.

"But we can't just let them get away with all of that!"

"You focus on the fires, J'shabi, you are injured. This one will stop them from escaping." Dagi says, pulling out a bow that was strapped on his back. So he's an Archer, then?

"But they'll just capture you again!"

"Do not worry about this one."

As Dagi runs off, I look around for a bucket and run off to follow the others to the lake. As I run into the forests I take a quick glance back at the village, the flames are spreading quickly. I don't think we'll make it there and back in time before it's too late, and Smallpaws alone won't be able to get enough water from the well to put the fires out...But what else can we do?

* * *

This one notices a change in the air – the scent is different. It smells of smoke, fire. Jahirr, Ma'krin and Ma'ketra must smell this too, for they look amongst each other for answers. A look of fear and regret is drawn on Ma'ketra's face – moreso than it has before. Ever since we found Ma'ketra, she has been leading us somewhere. What is she doing so far away from home? Why is she alone? Are the others nearby?

Khinashi forgets her question when her mind, too, is filled with fear. Beyond the bend in the road the smell becomes more prominent, and we see the fires themselves. A village is burning. Portneu View it must be. But why? Who did this?

Is it related to what happened at Torval?

Why is no one tending to the fires, trying to put them out?

This one jumps off of Jahirr, and runs over to a well, where she sees a small Alfiq levitating a bucket from within it, to fill it with water...If Ma'ketra is here, this must be Smallpaws.

"Paws? What are you- no, why is no one trying to put out the fire?"

A look of confusion covers his face, but he shakes his head and points to the cut rope of the well. It becomes clear now, whomever must have started the fires must have cut the rope to prevent them from putting them out.

Khinashi look everywhere around the village. Jahirr, Ma'krin and Ma'ketra take different directions. Jahirr chases a bandit off into the forests, Ma'krin pushes things away to stop the fires from spreading, and knocks non-flammable debris on top to contain the flames, and Ma'ketra runs over past the well, to where this one sees a group of bandits loading things onto a cart, and a young calico coloured...Wait, Dagi is here too? What is everyone doing here?

Not important. Fires, Khinashi, what can you do to help? The others must be trying to find some way to put the fires out – finding some source of water, but the flames are spreading too fast. It needs to be put out now if it will be contained at all. Something cold could do it...Hmm...Something cold.

Khinashi runs toward the worst of the flaming houses and casts Frostbite at the base of the flames from both hands. Concentrate, Khinashi, do not let it freeze your hands this time. You cannot afford to let that happen!

* * *

"Thanks for all the loot, losers, have fun sleeping on ash-" The bandit's words are cut short as this one's arrow lodges itself in his neck. He falls off the back of the cart he was standing on.

"Come on, we have to go now! Forget the others!" Shouts one of the bandits at the head of the cart. He whips the Senche-tigers into action and the cart darts off, but not before Dagi jumps on the back.

This one pulls off some of the barrels and crates, but the cart bumps into a rock and shakes the back heavily as this one heaves another off, making Dagi fall off and onto the ground.

Dang it. This one cannot let them get away with all of the village's food and supplies after what they have done!

Dagi chases after them, but they soon become a blur in the distance, it is pointless, there is no way he can catch up to them on his feet alone.

This one turns around disappointed, but which was soon changed to confusion and shock as a familiar Senche runs up to him. She just nearly stops, sliding across the dirt as she reaches me and beckons to this one to climb on her back.

"Ma'ketra? What are you-"

Dagi's voice is drowned out with an impatient and demanding growl, and so this one obliges.

As soon as this one climbs on her back she takes off with a speed that seems almost unattainable for a Senche, even a young one like her. It is a struggle to maintain balance with his knees and legs.

Soon the cart comes into view again, and then closer, and closer – until we are at the side. Dagi prepares to jump over to the cart from Ma'ketra's back, but the bandits see this before he can attempt, and whip the Senche-tigers to go faster. The others then take out bows and take position to fire at us.

Ma'ketra swerves back and forth wildly to dodge their arrows, while this one tries to steady himself for his own shots back.

Out of several arrows, only two strike home into the bandits. Not fatal shots, but enough to disarm them. Now they are going too fast, and are too far away to shoot any longer. If we are to stop them, we will need to think of something else.

This one looks over to the side of the road, up into the dense trees of the Tenmar. The road ahead will be turning left soon, but the forest is too dense for Ma'ketra to run through to make a shortcut to them.

Then that leaves only one other option, and Dagi does not like it. But he must.

"Ma'ketra, get close to the trees on the left, this one has an idea."

Ma'ketra seems to understand Dagi's plan and quickly moves close, slowing a bit to allow for Dagi to get more balance.

And then this one leaps into the trees, like Mother once did, and sprawls to the canopy.

The blur of leaves and trees frightens Dagi, for the thoughts overtake him, but this one focuses on the task at hand. Within seconds he is at the other side, where it breaks off into the road, and the Senche-tiger drawn cart comes into view. It is quite a leap down...

No. Do not be afraid, there is no reason. You can do this. Just remember what Mother told you long ago in your training. You can survive falls that would normally kill any mortal, if you have something to break it before the ground.

Dagi leaps out from the trees toward the cart, with claws extended, and lands on the back where some sacks of food were laid out. Before any of the bandits can turn around, this one stabs his claws into the necks of the two archers, and cuts the ropes between the cart and the driver's seat ahead.

The Senche-Tigers, now having much less weight to pull, run even faster. The drivers force them to turn around, nearly losing their balance from the seat in the process, but before they make the full turn, this one shoots an arrow toward them – not to the bandits, but to one of the Senche-Tigers. It hits home, and becomes enraged, no longer listening to their driver's instructions, and they run off into the distance, far away, and unable to stop until the Senche-Tigers calm down. By then it will not be worth it for them to return for the cart. They have lost.

And it is over.

Ma'ketra catches up to Dagi and smiles.

"We did it, Ma'ketra, we got back what they stole!"

* * *

The fires are waning now, only half a house and another remain, but this one can no longer cast any magic. She has done all she could, which has put out most fires, but it was not enough.

In the distance this one sees people coming out from the forest with buckets of water. One, who looks like a Clan Mother, runs over to Khinashi.

"Bright Moons! We did not think we would come back in time, but where did you come from? How did you put the fires out?"

"Magic. It is very useful. This one cannot cast any more though, she is sorry."

"Do not worry, child, you have done more than we ever could have, and most of the fires-"

The Clan Mother stopped mid-sentence as she looked over to one of the burning houses, one next to what looks like the Inn.

"No...No no no...How could this one have forgotten..."

"What is it?"

"A'zari!"

The Clan Mother runs over toward the burning house, and throws her water on the door to douse it to try and get inside, but she can not open the door. She pushes and pushes, but it must be locked from the inside.

Khinashi runs over to try and push at the door as well, but she is not strong enough. She could not cast magic at the flaming windows, and jumping through would be suicidal, someone must be trapped inside, but if they are, could they not just unlock it from there?

"Stupid door! Someone, anyone, bring more water here!"

More Khajiit with buckets of water run over and aim them at the windows, among them this one could see J'shabi, whom at this point Khinashi is not surprised to see, only that her clothing is quite unusual.

The flames are spread too far at the windows from inside where they cannot reach, but this one can see through it now – there is a female Tojay-raht tied up to a chair and unable to speak or move, and the fires are growing closer to her.

"We cannot use the windows, then, we must break the door down somehow." The Clan Mother shouts with utter desperation. Everyone runs and tosses themselves at the door but it does not budge. Khinashi feels extremely guilty for not knowing ahead of time – she would have put out this fire first.

But then a loud growl is heard from behind, and everyone moves to the side as Ma'krin charges at full speed into the door, flattening it without much effort. Seconds later we see him dragging out the chair the Tojay-raht is tied to with his teeth, and the Clan Mother quickly runs to her to untie her.

"Oh, A'zari, thank the moons you are alright!"

"Thanks, Mother...A'zari was not sure...not sure she would make it. Thank you."

The Clan Mother and her daughter look around at us, and J'shabi, Ma'krin, and Smallpaws walk over to this one, but then their eyes turn around to the back, and Khinashi follows – to see Dagi and Ma'ketra returning with a cart full of things tied to Ma'ketra's back, and then over to the forests, from where Jahirr emerges, pulling an unfortunate bandit by the leg held in his mouth, still alive, and no doubt to be questioned for everything that took place.

After a few moments the rest gather around us, and there is silence, as confusion is written on everyone's faces. Until that silence is broken by the Clan Mother, who approaches the group of us, which is Khinashi, J'shabi, Dagi, Smallpaws, Ma'ketra, Ma'krin, and Jahirr.

"Dra'muzi has no idea who any of you are, or why you have come here, but...Thank you. Thank you for saving our village."

* * *

"So why...What are you doing here, Khinashi?" J'shabi asks, as confused and curious as this one, as everyone. Khinashi made note of the lack of anger in her voice, though.

"This one could ask the same question to you, J'shabi."

Khinashi looks at all of the faces at the table we sit at inside the Inn of Portneu View. We have been given free food for our efforts, and Ma'krin is ever grateful for this fact. Ma'ketra, Jahirr, Smallpaws, and Dagi all wear looks of exhaustion mixed with confusion, and A'zari – Dra'muzi, the Clan Mother's daughter – looks at us with admiration and curiosity.

"What do you mean? I left a note back at home in Torval explaining we were looking for Dagi, and that Portneu View would be where we would first check. Didn't you find that? I would have expected Jo'azha or just Jahirr to come look for me, if anyone though."

"Note? This one did not see any note."

Jahirr growls in acknowledgment at what J'shabi said.

"Did you see this note then, Jahirr? Is that why you led us here?"

Jahirr tilts his head side to side, and nods. So he has, then, but that is not the only reason.

"Did Jo'azha or Tatanja tell you to bring Khinashi and Ma'krin with you to find us?" J'shabi asks to Jahirr.

Once again Jahirr repeats his previous movement, indicating J'shabi is half-right.

"Ah, J'shabi...You do not know, then, what happened last night at the festival..."

"What? Did something happen?" Dagi speaks up, concern written on his face.

"Yes, Dagi. This one remembered she forgot to tell you of the travelers, the ones you said killed your parents. They were the same. They returned."

"What? Assassins? Who killed your parents, Dagi? What happened at the festival, Khinashi?"

"So Khinashi did not tell you then after all. It is curious then why you came to save this one if you did not know."

"I think it would help if you all stopped keeping secrets from me and just tell me the whole thing from the beginning. What is going on?" J'shabi's anger was returning to her voice, she looks at this one demanding answers, and she deserves them.

"You are right, J'shabi, and this one will tell you. Khinashi is sorry for not telling you earlier, she promised Dagi she would not, and as for the festival, well...It is a long, and sad story."

"I've got time."

"After Dagi recovered from the Moon Sugar fit, he confided his past to this one – Khinashi did not ask – he spoke of how his father was the Moon Priest that was killed in Dune, which is what this one's Father went to investigate..."

* * *

"...And then Khinashi, with the help of Father and Master Do'hasrandru, managed to defeat the assassins inside the Mane's palace while the guards that Khinashi tipped off indirectly about the assassins in the cart, dealt with them, but when it was all over..."

Khinashi takes a few moments rest before continuing.

"What happened?" J'shabi and Dagi ask.

"The Mane had already been killed earlier in the day. The Mane, he was not the Mane at all, he was not Rid-Rawl'vah - He was Ra-Zara'chi! And he...killed, Father and Master Do'hasrandru before Khinashi's own eyes. The assassins were not there to kill the Mane, they were there to kill them by the orders of the 'Mane'."

Khinashi faces her head down, and does not speak for a few moments while that information sinks in. It will not be news to just J'shabi, but to Smallpaws, Ma'ketra, and Dagi too, and anyone within ear shot.

"What...?" J'shabi asks, disbelief ridden in her voice. Sad, confused moans are issued from Smallpaws and Ma'ketra nearby, and Jahirr and Ma'krin both have tears coming to them. Jahirr must be taking this as hard as Khinashi, they were best friends...

"Yes." That is all this one says.

"No..." Dagi says, sharing the disbelief.

"Why? Why would he? How could he...?" J'shabi says.

"Questions this one has been asking ever since, but there are no answers to be found."

"But...How? How did you escape then, if that happened? Do the others know? Is he being brought to justice?"

"Jahirr helped save Khinashi's life, from her own anger as well as Ra-Zara'chi...and no. As far as this one knows, to everyone else, they would think Ra-Zara'chi is Rid-Rawl'vah. He had put the blame for the assassination 'attempt' on Father and Do'hasrandru, as well as Khinashi. He had tasked Dar'Zhar-do with murdering this one, but...for some reason he did not. After we escaped, Jahirr brought Khinashi and Ma'krin to Portneu View today and, well, you know the rest."

"Then we have to go back there and tell everyone the truth!" J'shabi yelled.

Jahirr growls loudly at this in denial, Why does he still think that is a bad idea?

"Jahirr, you know we must!" Khinashi argues. "The others - Mother, Zalani, Jo'banja – they could be in danger too!"

Once more he growls back.

"But why? We cannot let him get away with this...We cannot! He killed Father..."

Jahirr looks down and frowns, and it becomes clear now. His heart agrees with Khinashi that we should return, but his mind knows it to be a bad idea.

"Jahirr may be right, Khinashi." Dagi begins. "It may not be safe. If you are the only one who knows the truth he would want to kill you so you do not spread the truth, just as there are those trying to find this one."

"But what else can we do?" This one looks desperately at anyone for an answer.

To this one's surprise, it is A'zari who speaks – the daughter of the Clan Mother of Portneu who had been listening to our conversation.

"Maybe you could go to Corinthe and tell everyone there. It is a two days travel, but A'zari has been there before with other villagers, and the Clan Mother there is very nice. So are some of the other people who live there, if you tell them what happened, and could convince them to believe you, this one is sure they could help you out with spreading the truth."

"Corinthe. It is true some people there may be able to help us out. This one grew up there for half his life, until..."

This one knows what thoughts are going through Dagi's mind, she remembers what he had said back in Torval about that.

"So we will go to Corinthe, then. That is better than nothing. Khinashi would still prefer to return to Torval but...Anyway, not all of you have to come with us, it would be perhaps safer if you did not. If it is true that Dagi and Khinashi are being hunted, then those whom are with us would only be putting their own lives at risk as well."

"Oh no, don't think for one second I'm letting you and Dagi go off by yourselves and get killed. I'm coming with you, today was just proof enough I can't let Dagi out of my sight, and I know how you think, Khinashi, you wouldn't last two days without me pointing out the flaws in your schemes."

This one smiles at her words, she must not hold much a grudge against Khinashi anymore if she is back to her old joking self. Khinashi's eyes turn to the others at the table and Jahirr, Smallpaws, and Ma'krin put out their paws on the table, indicating they wish to come as well.

"So all of you are sure you want to come with us, then? It could be dangerous."

Smallpaws gave a snorting laugh at this, and Jahirr gave a serious look. Ma'krin looked pretty bored really, this one thinks he just wants to come along because he cannot think of anything better to do. Ma'ketra puts out her paw at last, too. She has a look of fear in her face though.

"Ma'ketra? Are you sure you wish to come with us as well? You do not have to if you do not want to."

She gave a firm nod and her look of fear was replaced with determination. She has made her choice.

A'zari speaks up once more. "This one wishes she could join you, but she has to stay and help Mother with the village duties. It sounds like you have a big adventure ahead of yourselves."

The way A'zari said that brought both happiness and sadness to Khinashi. It would be an adventure, or the closest she has ever had to one. An adventure, like the ones Father always had gone on, like the ones Khinashi always dreamed of having...except they were for much more happy reasons.

"So we are all going then. If none of us are returning to Torval then the least we could do is send a letter to Mother – to Tatanja – to tell them of what we are doing. She must be worried sick about our disappearance. We can stay here tonight and leave for Corinthe tomorrow morning."

Khinashi looks to the faces of all those around her, each of them have a sense of determination in their eyes, they are in this quest with Khinashi all the way.

The door opened as a Khajiit ran inside the Inn with a quick pace. Khinashi did not recognize him, but he walked over to us.

"You there, all of you, the Clan Mother would like to speak to you all outside in the center of the village."

"What is it? Did something else happen?" J'shabi says.

"No, no, nothing bad...You will see. Come, follow this one."

* * *

"This one stands before you all, our saviors, with great honor and respect. Were it not for all of you to arrive here today when you did, our village would have been destroyed. Young though most of you all may be, you have shown great courage and skill, and you have saved lives today. We have two gifts for you in thanks for your assistance in stopping the Tenmar Claws bandit gang from destroying our village. The first is a shawl for each of you, hand-crafted by this one herself, each unique and showing which phase of the moons you were born under, imprinted on each on top of the colour of the night sky.

We give thanks to you, J'shabi the Ohmes, for defeating the bandit gang's leader in single combat, which struck fear into the others to make them flee.

We give thanks to you, Smallpaws the Alfiq, for were it not for you J'shabi would have had to fight off the entire gang at once, which would not have ended well.

We give thanks to you, Khinashi the Suthay, for dousing the flames from most of our houses after the bandits had fled, for without you we would not have houses to sleep in at night.

We give thanks to you, Dagi the...Dagi, for chasing the bandits who escaped and stopping them – so that you could return all that they had stolen for us. Without you we would not have enough food to last the month.

We give thanks to you, Ma'ketra the Senche, for your speed and agility, for without you Dagi would not have been able to catch the runaways.

We give thanks to you, Ma'krin the Senche, for your strength and courage to smash down the door of a flaming house and enter it to save this one's own daughter, A'zari. Without you...Well, this one does not like to think about it.

We give thanks to you, Jahirr the Pahmar-raht, for your hunting prowess. You helped to chase down one of the bandits who fled into the forests and allowed us to bring him to justice. Now we know more about the rest of their gang which will help the guards across Elsweyr prevent them from causing any more trouble to anyone else.

We give thanks to you all for saving our lives, and our village. May you wear your shawl with pride.

Which brings me to the second gift, that of recognition. For together you have shown us what Khajiit can do when they work together, you show us just why it is important that we respect each other regardless of form, for each has an important place in society.

And that is why we will remember you as the Pride of Portneu, and tell others of your exploits. Let this hearken back to ancient times of strife, an honor to the honored Lunar Pride of Pelletine and Anequina, those of which brought peace by uniting Khajiit of all forms. May bright moons always guide your path, and may dark moons take your foes, Pride of Portneu."

As Clan Mother Dra'muzi finishes her speech and passes out the shawls to each of us, all of the villagers around clap and cheer for us, and there is a permanent smile on all of our faces. Each of us put on our shawls, and the Clan Mother helps Jahirr, Ma'ketra, Ma'krin and Smallpaws with theirs. This one walks off to the side to look around at everyone, but her thoughts are interrupted when J'shabi walks up to her.

"Hey, Khinashi? Do you have a moment?"

"Of course, J'shabi. What do you need?"

J'shabi took a deep breath, and her smile turned to a frown, which confused this one.

"I just wanted to say, I'm sorry for how I acted to you back in Torval after Dagi left. I was angry, and I didn't give you any chance to explain yourself. I just assumed he left because of what happened and...well, I was wrong. Afterwards, when you went to the Mane's palace and got thrown in jail, I was avoiding you, I didn't think you had any good reason for doing what you did, but I was wrong then too...And what you did at the festival, that was actually really brave of you, Khinashi."

"Perhaps, but this one did not stop them..."

"Hey, look, there was no way you could have known about that... You did all you could - which is more than anyone else - and you still did a lot, you stopped the other assassins, and who knows? They may have had more targets that survived because of you."

"But Father did not."

J'shabi remained silent. It is good to hear she forgives this one, but Khinashi cannot feel proud of her actions at the Festival, for they did not succeed, and the cost of failure was too high.

"You were right about one thing." This one spoke at last.

"What do you mean?"

"This one did not understand. Perhaps she does still not, but of what she knows now, Khinashi has far more to apologize to you than you think you do to this one. This pain has only been with her for a day, you have felt this for most of your life. It does not go away, does it?"

J'shabi looks at the ground for a few moments before responding.

"No, but you don't always have to let it hurt. When it does, don't let it bring you down, let it push you onward, but not take over you."

"That does not seem like a simple task..."

More moments pass in silence.

"...So, we're the Pride of Portneu now, huh? Pretty nice name, I like it. The shawl is pretty comfortable too, I could get used to this."

This one chuckles to herself and silently thanks her for changing the subject.

"Indeed. It is a great honor to be named after the Lunar Pride in such a fashion, even if it is from a small village, this one hopes we can live up to that honor."

"Yeah, I was going to ask you about that... Who are, or were, the Lunar Pride? I never heard of them before."

This one is shocked to hear those words, but then she remembers it is J'shabi she is speaking to. She is still new to Elsweyr, and her focus lies less in the history of the land, but more in its fighting styles.

"Well, you know of the Lunar Champions, yes? Those that become the Mane? Well, the Lunar Champions were not always destined to become the spiritual leader of our land – the first Lunar Champion to do so was Rid-T'har-ri'datta soon after the uniting of Anequina and Pelletine to form the Elsweyr confederacy in the early Second Era-"

J'shabi yawns, interrupting Khinashi.

"What? Sorry, I'm tired. Go on."

"Well, the first Lunar Champion – to be called the Lunar Champion anyway - was a member of the Lunar Pride, their leader, or closest they had to a leader. The Lunar Pride existed far back when Anequina and Pelletine were in fierce wars, and the land was in constant strife. The different forms of Khajiit did not trust or respect one another, and some tried to reduce others to second class citizens – or worse – within society. The Lunar Pride were a group of Khajiit of all forms who worked together to bring peace to the land and show that all Khajiit should be treated as equals, and not some as lesser beings. They say there was another, growing problem arising in the land at the time, too – far worse than any petty political struggle, which the Lunar Champion brought an end to. This act earned him the title of the Lunar Champion, and all who were born under the eclipse from then after like he was, but details on what exactly happened then are scarce and few. Khinashi has never found a book that said anything other than that the Lunar Champion put an end to...well, something."

"I guess that tends to happen with ancient history a lot, things get forgotten over time."

"Perhaps." This one says.

We turn around and see Dagi staring off into the night sky, with a look of anxiety or confusion.

"Dagi? What is the matter? Something on your mind?"

"What? No. Nothing, really." Dagi says.

There is a few moments of silence.

"Khinashi, did you see the moons in the sky last night, after the festival?"

That was a strange question if Khinashi ever heard one.

"Uh, maybe? This one does not know, she was a bit busy trying not to be killed. Khinashi thinks it was pretty cloudy anyway, why, what does that matter?"

"It is getting pretty dark out."

"So what? Dagi, you are not making any sense. If you want to see the Moons stay out longer, we are not up on platform bridges anymore, the Moons would be behind the canopy trees where we cannot see until very late."

"Ah, yeah...right...This one thinks he will get some sleep, need to be well rested for tomorrow's journey."

This one does not respond, merely look confused and suspicious of Dagi as he returns to the Inn. It is not a bad idea, though, perhaps Khinashi should go to sleep soon as well. But first, she must write the letter to Mother explaining everything that has happened, that cannot be put off any longer, she needs to know.

* * *

Dear Mother, Tatanja of the Tygra Tribe, Caretaker of the House of Cats of Torval

This one hopes this letter reaches you soon, Mother, you must be worried sick not having any idea where she is, nor the others, and...this one knows that by now you will have heard of what happened to Father...Khinashi will not repeat it here, it pains her much, but she will say that what you have heard may not be the full truth, so she will have to mention some of it.

But first, this letter should bring some semblance of happiness to you. Khinashi, J'shabi, Smallpaws, Ma'ketra, Ma'krin, Jahirr – and even Dagi, the calico coloured boy – remember him? Are safe in Portneu View right now as Khinashi writes this. So you can rest easy...easier, knowing that much at least.

Khinashi does not doubt you saw through the Mane's lies when he would have said that Father and Khinashi planned to kill him, but what you might not have known is that the Mane is already dead, and the one you see now is Ra-Zara'chi impersonating his brother. This one does not know why he did it, but he has and he knows Khinashi is a threat to him if she can reveal his treachery to others, and so that is why Khinashi cannot return to Torval – despite how much she may want to .

We will be traveling to Corinthe to seek help there on this matter, we should be there in about two days – that is, from Tirdas morning, when we plan to leave. We should be there by Turdas morning. This one does not know when you will be able to read this. It would be wise not to tell others yet unless you trust them completely, for as you are in Torval, the Mane is close and his power is much so...In fact you might want to burn this letter after you get it to be safe.

Father may be dead, but his death will not be in vain, Khinashi will see to that. Do not worry, whatever Ra-Zara'chi is planning now as Mane, we will work to stop it, no matter what.

P.S. We just saved a bunch of people's lives today in Portneu View and were named the 'Pride of Portneu' for it. Just like Father used to do, right?

* * *

"So they will be heading to Corinthe, then." Ra-Zara'chi says as he burns the letter.

"You fiend, that letter was not meant for you to read!" Jo'banja hisses from inside her cage.

"Silence, cat. You are lucky this one decided to read it to her at all! It would be remiss not to let Tatanja know that her daughter is safe and sound...and that she will be hunted down as a wanted criminal by every guard in Elsweyr for her crimes and put to death very shortly."

This one did not make any response, she could not shed anymore tears at this news, there are none left to be shed, no words to be spoken, there is just no point. Tatanja remains curled up in this cold cell with only one desire, that she could somehow help Khinashi and her friends, to keep them safe somehow, but knows it to be in vain. If Jo'azha could not stop him...

"If this one could break out of this cage she would rip your other hand off!"

"So tell this one again why it would not just be easier to kill them instead of lock them up? Perhaps at least the Alfiq-raht?" The Dagi-raht henchmen says, Tatanja thinks his name was Dazlah.

"If you would not have failed so miserably at your simple task they would already be dead. No, it is too late now, if this one is to take on the guise of his brother he has to act like him at least enough to convince the others, and Rid-Rawl'vah never sentenced people to execution on such grounds."

"We could just, you know, make them disappear..."

"This one could make you disappear!" Jo'banja shouts back.

"No. Consider this punishment for your failure."

"I still don't get how you were just found sleeping by a bush..."

"Dazlah told you already, Rajirr, he was not sleeping! Someone knocked him out!"

"Right, right, of course..."

"You failed just as much, Rajirr. We lost dozens of allies to your lack of ability to give a simple signal. Their deaths are on your head." Ra-Zara'chi says.

"So what? Hate me if I couldn't pass up the chance to rub it in an old rivals face that he was about to die. At least he's dead now."

"You are not giving a good impression of the Dark Brotherhood's competence."

"Hmph, we are no longer actually in-oof!" Dazlah is interrupted.

"What he means to say is that this won't happen again. So what do you need us to do now?"

Ra-Zara'chi eyes the two Khajiit suspiciously.

"Dazlah, this one will be sending you to Corinthe. You are to eliminate the remaining threat, that is Jo'azha's daughter Khinashi, and her six friends traveling with her. They must not be allowed to spread the truth, although no one will believe them anyway once they are branded as criminals. The guards will likely take care of it before you do, but Ra-Zara'chi has learned to not rely on one plan alone. This one's son is already working on a depiction of what each of them look like, so you will know who to look for. Wanted posters will be made from it and spread around Corinthe, and then the rest of Elsweyr following, if necessary. They will have nowhere to hide."

"So this one is to go alone, then?"

"If you feel you are not competent enough to kill a few children by yourself, then take a few of those Krin fools with you."

"Alright then, works for this one." Dazlah says as he leaves the room to prepare.

Tatanja hears footsteps coming down the stairs into the jail. It is Ra-Zara'chi's son, Dar-Zhar'do.

"Father. This one finished those drawings for you, see?"

Ra-Zara'chi snatches the paper from him and eyes it closely.

"What do you think? It is quite good, no?"

"You seem to remember quite a lot of what Khinashi looks like from memory alone."

"Ah, but details are important though, yes?"

Dar-Zhar'do smiles weakly at his Father, whom is just annoyed and raises his right hand to smack him, until he remembers he no longer has a right hand. Ra-Zara'chi shouts from annoyance and drops the paper from is others.

"Just go. Go tell the Pahmar couriers you have the drawings done. We must have them leave soon to arrive before Khinashi and her friends get to Corinthe."

"Yes, Father!" Dar-Zhar'do says, running back up the stairs.

"That reminds Ra-Zara'chi. Rajirr, while your...less intelligent partner travels to Corinthe, Ra-Zara'chi would like you to mentor Dar-Zhar'do, to remind him where his loyalties lie. He is not completely convinced of this one's cause, and that must change. Help him."

"Uh, yeah I'm not sure I'm the best guy to do that, I'm an assassin, not a-"

"You will do as Ra-Zara'chi says. You will train him and show him your ways, and help him see the just in our cause."

"'Our' cause? 'Cause I thought I was just doing this since you were paying me..."

"And you will be payed to do this."

"Sure then, why not?"

Rajirr and Ra-Zara'chi move to leave the room, but as Ra-Zara'chi is about to leave, he stops.

"Ancient wrongs will be righted, our curse will be broken, this one will see to that." He says as he climbs up the stairs.

For awhile there is silence.

"He sounds like he has had too much Moon Sugar." Jo'banja says at last.

"Oh, this one knew she should have done something earlier...Now it is too late, hmph." Clan Mother Zalani speaks.

"What do you mean, Zalani? You could have done something earlier?"

"Zalani, Jo'azha, Do'Hasrandru and Rid-Rawl'vah all suspected this could happen. The others wanted to believe it would not, but Zalani knew better, she could tell it was Ra-Zara'chi from the start. She could have simply told the guards and it would have never come to this, but those fools...they did not want to believe it. Rid-Rawl'vah would not believe his brother would be capable of such a thing."

"So you knew about it before it happened? How?"

"Well it is complicated, but it all comes down to visions."

"Ah, yeah, it usually does. So you did not tell anyone, then? Truly no one else knows?"

"The others would not let this one tell anyone. Zalani felt all should know, but, bah...She should not have listened to them, look where that has gotten us. They are dead and now this one is in jail. Were it not for Khinashi's snooping no one would know the truth. Whenever she has done similar things this one has always scolded her, but perhaps this time it was not such a bad thing."

"So you are telling this one that the only people who know that the mane is a traitor and impostor, that are not in jail, still alive, and on our side, are a group of Khajiit teenagers soon to have a bounty on their heads and will be hunted down by professional assassins?"

"Well, they have Jahirr with them too, he is quite old."

"Oh yes, how could this one forget that big oaf..."

Jo'banja sighs, and covers her face with her paws.

"Why does the task of saving the land always fall to those least capable of saving it?"

No one answers Jo'banja's question, and for awhile there is complete silence. As much as this one hates to admit it, they do not stand much a chance at revealing the truth when they will be known to all of Elsweyr as criminals once those wanted posters are copied and posted on walls. They do not even know that all of them will be wanted before it is too late.

If only this one could help them some how, Tatanja feels so distant...

She looks beyond the cell bars for awhile, staring, and after some amount of time notices something strange beyond the bars. It is a piece of papyrus – the drawing Dar'Zhar-do had made for the wanted posters. Did they drop it and forget to pick it back up?

"Was that 33 years ago, or 34 years? No, 33, has to be..." This one hears Tolgun mumbling from the cell next to her, as well as the sound of scratching against papyrus.

"Tolgun? What are you doing?" This one asks – it has been so long since she has said anything, her throat is heavy from sobbing so much.

"Huh? Oh, just writing, trying to remember some things."

"Writing? Writing what? They would not allow us to bring tools like that in here, how are you doing this?"

"I asked if I could write out my confession and they gave me some papyrus and a quill and inkwell, what, is that not how it's supposed to work?"

"Confession? Confession for what? Tolgun, you are innocent – as are we all – the Mane is an impostor and put us all in jail for he felt we would expose him. You have nothing to confess about!"

"Maybe for the rest of you, but I knew this day would come. I knew all my crimes would eventually catch up to me, even in Elsweyr, on the other side of the continent, no matter how far you run, the past follows you everywhere you go. Now that it has, my only hope of reaching Sovngarde is to confess, and hope for Shor's forgiveness."

"Crimes? What crimes, Tolgun? This one would never have suspected you to be capable of anything worth needing to confess about."

"That's what they all say, I was a good pretender, yeah, but not good enough, or I wouldn't be in here. I'm a criminal, Tatanja, I was a bad kid, grew up into a bad man, I tried to repent, to forget, but you never forget...I stole cookies from the cookie jar when I was 6, pushed over the Grey Mane's Ox in Whiterun when I was 9. I broke someone's window on accident in a snowball fight when I was 12. These things don't just disappear, they're on my record forever, and now they came back to haunt me."

This one thinks Tolgun has lost his mind...Those things are barely worth even mentioning, let alone regretting and feeling he has to confess about them, but if he has a quill and inkwell, that gives this one an idea...

"Tolgun, could you perhaps let this one borrow your quill and inkwell?"

"Why? Do you feel you need to confess about something too?"

"Uh, yes. Tatanja, too, has many things she regrets and needs to confess about, she needs to get it off her chest."

"Alright, do you need Papyrus too then? I have a few sheets spare I won't need. I figured I'd need about two dozen, but it seems 20 will be enough."

"No, that will...not be necessary, this one will tattoo it instead, to make sure she never forgets."

"Hmm, now that is a good idea, I think I might do that too, thanks."

Tolgun passes over the quill and inkwell through the bars, this one reaches out to grab it. Success! Now she just needs to find a way to get that drawing, and perhaps Khinashi and the others will have one less thing to worry about...

"Sister, you are still able to use spells from your cage, yes?"

"Yes, but if you are asking if this one can find any keys or lockpicks to break out of here, do not bother. It seems they are at least not that stupid. Still pretty stupid, though."

"That will not be necessary, this one has something else in mind..."


	9. Chapter 8: A Tale of Two Kitties (P1)

**Chapter 8: A Tale of Two Kitties (Part 1)**

Middas, 20th of Last Seed, 4E 98

Dear Diary,

Ah, how relaxing it is to write in a diary again, although Khinashi regrets that she could not use her old one, for that still resides back home in Torval. A'zari was kind enough to give Khinashi a new one to use, for she says it is important to record all that happens on our adventure – and equally important to some day return and show her. This one does not think there will be much to write, however, all we are doing is traveling to Corinthe and informing the Clan Mother and other authorities their of Ra-Zara'chi's treachery – it will be out of our hands from then on, and we will most likely return to Torval with them as they deal with Ra-Zara'chi. Still, of what adventure there will be, Khinashi will make sure to write about it, after all, this one should be as equally enthusiastic about it – adventuring is what this one has always dreamed of doing some day, no? Except right now, all it seems to be is a bunch of walking...

We had set out from Portneu View yesterday morning, and it is now Middas evening. We are setting up some camp from supplies the villagers lent to us for our journey, and if we wake up early, we should arrive in Corinthe tomorrow around the time the sun reaches its zenith. We might have arrived earlier, if Dagi remembered which way to go...he had led us in the wrong direction for hours until J'shabi finally realized after checking her map. The following argument between them was quite amusing. No one may know J'shabi's age, but some times it is quite clear that, even if she is not the oldest, she quite acts like it. J'shabi and Jahirr have a full time job keeping the rest of us in line.

Each night Dagi has been acting strange, he keeps looking at the night sky with a look of anxiety, and asks if any of us has seen the moons. He did this back in Portneu View as well, but this one has tried to tell him – on cloudy nights, in the Tenmar forest on the ground floor, it is difficult to see them with the canopy and emergent trees blocking most of the sky. When we arrive in Corinthe they will be clear for all to see, but why does it matter so much to him? There is much mystery surrounding Dagi, but this one has learned not to ask about it. If he feels something should remain secret, then that is his choice, this one just wishes he could at least admit what it is he fears that is bothering him so much...

Despite the circumstances, Khinashi must admit she is eager to see Corinthe with her own eyes. She has heard much about the cities of Elsweyr from Father, and from books – it will be interesting to see how accurate those accounts have been. They said Corinthe is a border town between old Pelletine and Anequina, even though it was officially a part of Anequina – or rather Ne Quin-al in its truest name – and as such, many from the south and the north live there in relative unity under the twin moons. Corinthe was mostly destroyed during the unification of Anequina and Pelletine to become Elsweyr, early in 2nd era. Entire districts that once existed were no more after the battles that took place there – but it still fared better than other places throughout the land, like Ne Quin-al - the capital city of the north itself, which is now lost beneath the sands. Most fascinating is that, according to history, when Rid-T'thar-Ri'datta proposed the Riddle'Thar – the rotational governing power based on the phases of the moons - the two warring tribes who were in the midst of battle within Corinthe, sheathed their claws and settled there to help rebuild. Descendants from those two tribes – The Khajepako of Anequina and the Jah'ishir from Pelletine - exist even to this day, and take much pride in their lineage, which is a strange concept for most Khajiit. Aside from the Clan Mother, the Chieftain of the Khajepako and the lord of the Jah'ishir have rotational authority based on the phases, in regards to city-wide decisions.

The city itself is a bit beyond the Tenmar forest, where the green grass merges with the yellow savannah, and trees become less plentiful. The architecture of the buildings is diverse, from stone buildings with flat roofs like most of the big cities in the north, to wooden ones made to mimic Pelletine's palaces with their curved roofs, while the Khajepako have large fortified tents in respect to their nomadic heritage, even though they themselves do not wander anymore. Most of the city proper is on a flat hilltop of sorts, and as such what rain they do get does not threaten them with floods, so the buildings are on the ground rather than propped in the air, it must feel strange living so close to the ground. Outside of the hilltop are where the farms are about, along with some nomadic and traveling Khajiit who set their tents up for the duration of their stay, since it is far too crowded within the city. The Inn is quite simply not enough for the amount of traffic they get, and so they are more of a tent selling shop. Most who pass through Elsweyr often go through Corinthe for provisions and trade, and because of that, Corinthe is one of the largest trading cities in Elsweyr, on par with Rimmen, but still outmatched by Senchal, of course. Still, most of the center stretch of the city is a bustling, busy bazaar - built over one of the districts that were destroyed in the old war - and is far bigger than the humble marketplace of Torval.

But that is just what the books say, the best source of information for Khinashi is to see it herself, which is exactly what she will do tomorrow. Ra-Zara'chi will be brought to justice soon when they hear our tale.

Bright Moons, diary.

* * *

"Hah, this is still not even a challenge, J'shabi!" Khinashi roars as she dashes through the jungle, she can see the end of the trees not far ahead, and soon the grass will part to meet the savannah and the city of Corinthe just ahead.

"Hey, you're cheating! You said you wouldn't use your legs like that, I can't run that way!" J'shabi scolds. It is true, J'shabi would never be able to outrun a Suthay under normal circumstances, this one had already shortened her steps but apparently that is not enough to convince her she tried to make it easier for her.

"Fine, Khinashi bets she can still run faster than you backwards then, and we will race to the city gates so you can catch up!"

J'shabi did not respond, but now that this one is looking behind she can see her face, and she does not seem to like the idea of needing a handicap to be able to win. It is her fault for challenging this one to a race to prove that Ohmes can run just as fast as Suthays – no Ohmes could run faster than a Suthay – much less a Tojay - in a straight line, our feet and legs are built for speed and leaps, but not for balance or turning, but she does not accept this, so what other option is there but to prove it?

J'shabi sprints forward with determination, at an angle so diagonal it is a wonder she does not trip, she is gaining distance now however. The last of the trees part and we are now in the open, and J'shabi begins to tire out from the sprinting – she did not pace herself and now faces the consequences, nearly tripping over a log as she regains her balance.

"Come now, J'shabi, you will have to do better than that if you-woah!"

This one tumbles over a rock she could not see from running backwards and spirals down a short hill off of the road nearby Corinthe. After rolling for a few seconds this one finally manages to stand up and sees that the hill led to an overhanging ledge leading into a cave – which was blocked off with a strange black door.

"Hope you had a nice trip Khinashi-! Wait, what is that?" J'shabi says, walking down to her from the hill.

Khinashi inspects the door closer and sees that there are strange worn carvings on it – something that looks like a skull with a hand print on its forehead, and the skeleton of an infant child beneath it.

"This one thinks she has seen this symbol somewhere before...Or read about it."

Khinashi raises out a hand to step forward and touch it, but before she can, J'shabi grabs her arm and pulls her back.

"Hey! What are you-"

"I don't like the look of this Khinashi..."

This one gave a confused look toward J'shabi, but before she is able to say anything she is interrupted by the sight of Jahirr and Dagi, soon followed by Smallpaws and the twins – Ma'krin looking as annoyed as he ever has since we decided for him to carry all of the supplies.

Jahirr gave a warning growl and forced us to step away from the door.

"What is it Jahirr? Do you know something about this door?"

Jahirr roared again, shaking his head, in such a way that he was not answering the question, but saying he will not say anything about it.

"Ah, so you have found the Black Door." Dagi says, approaching us.

"So you know what this is then? This one thinks she has heard of something like it, before, but she cannot remember-"

"Most in Corinthe know of the door, yes. No one knows how to open it, but if you stand too close, it starts asking strange questions, some have tried to answer them to see if it opens, but they have either failed or..."

"Or what?"

"Or they are not heard from again."

"So someone has gotten inside of it before then-?"

"Khinashi, come on lets just go, it's just a door, we'll be seeing a lot of those when we get to Corinthe. Whatever's behind it can stay there, we've got a job to do." J'shabi interrupts, with a clear sense of impatience.

"Hey, this one was just asking a question, no need to-"

Khinashi is interrupted by the sound of Jahirr jumping forward, Khinashi turns around to see that Smallpaws had crawled close up to the door and was now being chased away from it by Jahirr.

And then the door spoke.

"What is the feeling of life?"

This one was thinking of an answer to respond, but Ma'ketra became too frightened from the door and ran off back to the road, and Jahirr gave a look that told her it would not be a good idea to say anything, lest she face his wrath.

Khinashi shakes her head and walks off with the rest, thinking about what the answer would be to that question, what is on the other side, and where she has seen that symbol before.

"Hey Khinashi, I think you're forgetting something." J'shabi says, far ahead as she looks back.

"What?"

"The race isn't over, we're still not at the city gates!" she says, dashing off into another sprint. This one picked up her feet and ran after her to catch up.

* * *

"Oh come on, it's no fun if you just let me win. We'll have to have a rematch later." J'shabi says to this one as she sits down next to her outside of the city gates. It will be a few moments before the others catch up to us.

"Fine, perhaps this one will make it less obvious next time then, or you could be less hard on yourself whenever you lose at something and that would not be necessary, hmm?"

"Sorry, it's just...I think I could do better, but I can't tell what I'm doing wrong if you don't point out my mistakes."

"The only mistake you are making is feeling you need to be good at everything, J'shabi. Suthays and Tojays have a natural advantage in speed and jumping over Ohmes and Cathays, but not as much balance or stability. Tojay-rahts even moreso, have you ever seen a Tojay-raht run and jump? They are the best at our sports, but set them up and they will trip on a twig!"

"Well, A'zari didn't seem that fast back in Portneu."

"And A'zari is not a Tojay-raht, she is a Tojay. She is also 12 and not used to physical training, what would you expect? One's form might give them an advantage, but it does not automatically make them good at anything. They still have to put in effort."

"What do you mean? I thought she was a Tojay-raht, she was taller than us even at her age, and she had my face and your legs and ears, and had wider shoulders."

Khinashi chuckles at this, even though J'shabi has been here for three years, sometimes it seems...otherwise, based on her acknowledgement of our culture. Perhaps she would know more if she showed more interest in learning it.

"That is close, yes, but the easiest way to tell a Tojay from a Tojay-raht is whether they have fur or not. Like Ohmes are the only Khajiit without at tail, the Tojay are the only form without fur. Also, Tojay-rahts are much taller, as tall as Cathay-rahts."

"She didn't have fur? Strange, I thought that would be more...well, noticeable?"

"As noticeable as your fur is from afar, perhaps. Ah, but do not worry J'shabi, they are the rarest normal form of Khajiit, moreso than even Dagis, so it is alright that you did not know that. There are no Tojays living in Torval that Khinashi knows of currently - most tend to go north, for their lack of fur makes their living in the rainforest unpleasant from all the bugs."

"Gee, thanks for the culture lesson Khinashi, could you be anymore boring?" J'shabi says sarcastically. Khinashi laughs at this, and sees the others walking toward them, with the exception of Dagi, who hangs back with his hood covering his face.

"What is the matter Dagi? The sun is not so bright that you must hide from it, is it?"

"This one would feel better if we did not stay here long. People here may recognize him, Dagi does not want to put them at risk while the assassins still live. They will be safer if they did not see this one, so he will stick to the shadows and alleyways while you inform the Clan Mother."

"It probably does not matter if they see you, Dagi, once they learn of our plea the assassins will be dealt with, and it is not like they could have known where we went. Besides, they are not just looking for you, but this one as well now."

"You are a stranger to them, they have no reason to withhold information for your protection against their own risk. Besides, this place brings back too many memories...He would rather not be reminded of them more than he must."

"Fair enough, you can wait out here if you wish. We should not be long, right?" Khinashi says, looking to the rest of her group. The others gave no look of protest at the suggestion, and so this one stood up to enter the city, with the others following close behind. It only then dawned on her that it was a bit strange there are no guards posted outside the gates.

We pushed open the large wooden door to the city proper, and our first glimpse of Corinthe was one of admiration, excitement, and...confusion. From the start this one can tell something was different here, the looks on people's faces as we walk by, they do not seem cheerful, but hesitant, full of worry...full of doubt. There were many people, the streets filled to the brim and spilling over into the alleys, but it did not have that sound of chatter that this one heard during times when the marketplace was busy in Torval – and this is even much bigger than that. It did not seem to fit the city scene it was in. The others noticed it too, this one could tell, from the looks on their faces, we did not all know what to expect Corinthe would be like, but we at least expected it to be more...lively.

But that is no matter, we came here to talk to the Clan Mother, where ever she is in this large city.

A door opens from a nearby building and two Cathay Khajiit guards, a male and female, step outside what looks to be their barracks as they return to their posts at the gates. Perhaps they were just on break earlier which is why we did not see them?

This one tugs on J'shabi's shoulder and points over to them, and she understood. We could just ask them where the Clan Mother is rather than wander around aimlessly.

"Hey, excuse Khajiit-" This one says as she approaches them.

"Let this one guess...Someone stole your sweet roll?" The male guard responds, and they both burst out laughing.

"What...?"

"Ah Rojar, this one can still not get over that, after all that chasing, and then he just eats it..."

"And the look on his face, Keshna, priceless...This one never saw someone so angry about losing a sweet roll, or one so desperate to steal it and not give it up, a story to tell among guards for years to be sure."

"Excuse me," J'shabi interrupts them. "I believe Khinashi wanted to ask you a question."

Suddenly both of the guards jolly faces turn serious.

"Wait, did you say Khinashi?" The male guard – Rojar – says.

"You think it could be them?" The other guard, Keshna, replies.

"I do not know, but now that you mention it..."

Khinashi's face turns fearful, as do the others. The way they said that did not sound good.

"Wait, Khajiit is not-" Khinashi spat out the words, but was interrupted by Rojar.

"You there! All of you! It is all over, lawbreakers, your spree is at an end! This one will take any stolen goods you have, and will haul you away!"

Khinashi heard the sounds of claws being unsheathed, and threatening growls issued from her companions, likewise the guards readied their weapons.

"Stop, all of you! Do not fight! This is just a misunderstanding, we can explain ourselves...We are innocent!" This one shouted amongst them before the fighting would begin. J'shabi and the others did not seem completely convinced this was a good idea, we do not know why the guards are calling us criminals.

"Please..." This one begged, and finally they sheathed their claws and weapons.

"You're making a mistake, we aren't the criminals, it's-!" J'shabi shouts.

This one nudged J'shabi to stop her from continuing, if we are to talk our way out of this, it will require subtly. We do not even know why they are taking us in.

"That is too bad, this one was hoping you would resist arrest...Fine, we will take you to captain Tarel at-Taneth and see what he would have us do with all of you."

The guards hold out their weapons and begin escorting us somewhere with our hands raised or heads low depending on which was possible.

"Tarel at Taneth? Where is Taneth?" This one asks.

"It's a city in Hammerfell." J'shabi says.

"You are taking us all the way to Hammerfell?" Khinashi asks incredulously.

"No, that's his surname, at-Taneth, meaning he was born in Taneth. It's a Redguard tradition." She explains.

"Hmph, silly smooth-skins and their family names. Khajiit do not bother with that."

"I'm surprised you didn't know that, does that mean I knew something you didn't?"

"So who is the boring one now, hmm?"

"Will you two shut up?" The guard Keshna says out of annoyance.

* * *

We are shoved forcefully into a small room with a desk, which a Redguard man sits at with his back turned, looking at a large poster pinned to the wall. It is hard to see what it depicts from this distance, but it looks like a wanted poster with several Khajiit drawn on it.

"Tarel at-Taneth, sir! This one has captured the culprits you mentioned who would be arriving here soon. This one deserves a raise, yes?" The guard Roger says, expectantly.

"Keshna helped too, she was first to suggest it could be them..."

"Ah, you did? Good work! That's one thing less that we have to worry about." Tarel says, turning in his chair, but his smile turns to a frown upon seeing us, mixed with a look of confusion. He slowly stands up and walks around the desk to look at us, and this one can now get a clearer look at the Wanted poster.

She can see our names on it – Khinashi, J'shabi, 'Dagi', Jahirr, Ma'ketra, Ma'krin and Smallpaws. What? How could that be? What is a Wanted poster doing here – how did they know we would come here? How did they know who was with us? J'shabi and most of the others were not even at the festival that night...

"Like I told your friends, we didn't do anything wrong!" J'shabi starts.

"Wait." Tarel commands. He pulls a hand to his chin and looks more closely at us. "Where is the last one?"

"Hmm? There is another?"

"Yes, the Dagi – a boy with tortoiseshell coloured fur. He was on the list too."

Tortoiseshell coloured? Dagi is calico coloured, not Tortoiseshell.

"Uh, we did not see him with the others..." Rojar responds, soon followed by his companion. "So you let him get away?"

"What? No, you were with this one too, you could have stayed behind, you should have remembered to remind him there was another if you knew!"

Khinashi looks to the poster again and, straining her eyes, can confirm that the poster does indeed depict Dagi as a tortoiseshell boy, and the other depictions...J'shabi has a tail and whiskers on her face, Khinashi is a solid dark colour instead of striped, Ma'krin and Ma'ketra have stripes instead of spots...none of them seem to properly depict any of us, but yet our names are correct...This gives Khinashi an idea.

"Keshna cannot be expected to-"

"Enough!" Tarel interrupts.

"Excuse this one, Tarel at-Taneth? May this one speak?" Khinashi requests, as humbly and innocently as possible.

"Speak. What do you have to say for yourself?"

"La'nashi is confused as to what is happening? This one and her friends were traveling from Portneu View and decided to stop through here for the day, and now we are being arrested?"

J'shabi looked confused toward this one, and so Khinashi tilted her head toward the poster.

"La'nashi? Keshna thought you said her name was Khinashi, Rojar!"

"It is! That is what the Ohmes said, she called her Khinashi, she is just trying to trick us."

"So you are looking for someone named Khinashi, or what?" This one continues.

"We were looking for you, do not think you can-" Rojar begins.

"Stop." Tarel orders. He looks back to the poster, inspects it, and then turns to us.

"I'm sorry, I think there's been a mistake."

"There is no mistake, this is them-!"

"Rojar, does this girl look like an Ohmes-raht to you? Do any of these others match the depictions on this poster?" He points over to it.

"Well..."

"Perhaps Rojar's eyesight is so bad he cannot tell the difference, hmm?" Keshna teases him.

"But you thought it was them too, Keshna, you did not deny it, you even suggested it first!"

"This one does not know what you are talking about, Rojar."

Tarel sighs at their constant bickering. "Please, both of you just return to your posts in case the actual culprits are found."

"Keshna will ensure Rojar does not do anything else stupid, Tarel."

The two guards leave the room, with only the six of us and the captain of the guard remaining. Suddenly Khinashi feels like she can relax now, and lets out a deep sigh of relief.

"I'm sorry you had to go through all of that, I'm afraid you've come to Corinthe at a bad time."

"What was that all about? You are looking for some people, yes? Who, and why?" Khinashi pressed – perhaps we could learn more of the situation from him.

"Reports are that there was trouble over in Torval recently, there was an assassination attempt on the Mane, they say his own brother and the Moon Hallowed - among others - tried to kill him during the Festival of the Third Moon. The Mane survived, but he lost his right hand in the battle, and the palace was set aflame while the Moon Hallowed's daughter escaped along with some others. They learned they were heading this way, and so earlier today we received the word to be on the look out for them, but I'm afraid we've had our own problems within the city the past few days on top of this."

"That is-!" J'shabi shouts, but this one stops her before continuing, she cannot let her emotions ruin our cover.

"That is terrible news, but at least the Mane is alive. Hopefully justice will be brought to the ones behind the assassination." This one tried her hardest to sound convincing.

This one's blood boils at the mention of Father being an assassin. The story has been skewed so terribly wrong, we will have to fix that, but if they somehow knew we were heading to Corinthe...then it will not be so easy to convince them, for they will have already accepted the story from Ra-Zara'chi.

"We have news of our own to impart – the Clan Mother of Portneu View wanted us to request a meeting with the Clan Mother of this city, to talk of recent happenings in Elsweyr, if that is all possible?"

"Dra'muzi sent you? Strange, she usually comes here herself to speak to Kishari."

"Dark times call for drastic measures, yes?"

"I guess so. Well, I'm afraid I can't help much with that. I have a lot of things that need my attention today, and my wife has her hands full herself with all that's been going on in Corinthe. You can try and talk to her, but my guess is she won't have the time. Honestly, my advice would be to leave and wait until things calm down here, it might be safer that way in case things turn ugly."

"Well, it is somewhat urgent...What is happening in town? The people here do not seem very happy."

"Hmph, well to answer that I'll ask this first: Have you taken a look at the night sky lately? Noticed anything strange about it?"

"This one has seen it, yes, but nothing too strange, why?"

"See - that's what I've been saying, there's nothing strange about it. You know then that for the past few days the moons haven't been seen. Some people are overreacting and think it's a bad omen - but it's just a phase, the New Moons come and go, and I guess sometimes when you don't expect them."

"Wait, the moons have not been seen at all? This one just thought the Tenmar trees hid them, but that is strange, it is not supposed to be a New Moon phase until-"

J'shabi interrupts and brings us back on topic. "So what does that have to do with anything in Corinthe?"

"Well, it certainly hasn't done any good for the town's two influential ruling tribes. They rotate power based on the Ja-kha'jay, you know? I always thought it was a bit silly but it's worked out for them, until now anyway...Well, under New Moons, the Khajepako tribe is supposed to rule, but the ones who keep track of the lattice say it's supposed to be a Waning Masser and full Secunda right now, which would mean the Jah'ishir are still supposed to be in charge for some time, and because of this, both of them think they're supposed to rule right now."

"Is it really so hard to just make some compromise until the moons go to their next phase?" J'shabi asks.

"Maybe not three years or so ago, but ever since then the two tribes haven't been on good terms, and recently that took a turn for the worst when a planned marriage between two of them fell flat. They've been at each other's throats over the simplest of disagreements, and now this happens? It's down to the Clan Mother to make a decision tonight on the matter of the ruling policy and, between the crazies who are using this sudden phase as an excuse to blame society, and the two tribes that both feel their claim to rule is right...there's a worry of a riot taking place tonight."

"And what if one happens, hmm? You will be able to control it, yes?"

"I'd like to think so, yes, but Corinthe is a big city, and so are the tribes. Riots in Elsweyr aren't like what they are in Hammerfell, from what I've heard anyway. Senche-rahts can cause a lot of collateral damage...no one is safe. Still, do what you will – You can try and see if my wife is able to spare some time to help you, but I wouldn't get my hopes up. She's seen no end to the questions and complaints since the eclipse, just keep that in mind if she seems a bit on edge."

"Thanks, we will."

"Oh, and if you do happen to see anyone who matches those depictions..." Tarel points over to the poster. "Be sure to let us know, we have enough problems as it is to worry about assassins lurking throughout the city."

"Of course...we will be sure to keep an eye out for them, thanks for the information..." Khinashi says, and with that the group recedes to the door and returns to the streets of Corinthe.

* * *

"So...what just happened?" J'shabi asks, as we walk far enough away from the barracks, the looks on the other's faces seem to share her confusion.

"This one...does not know? Someone must really have not known what we look like when drawing those wanted posters."

"Yeah, I get that...sort of, but more importantly, how did they even know we would be coming here? How did they know we were with you? I thought they were only after you and Dagi."

Khinashi gives it much thought before responding. Perhaps Ra-Zara'chi sent someone to Portneu View and they learned from them? This one dreads the thought – for they would not have given up the information willingly, they would know of Ra-Zara'chi's betrayal...Could we have saved them only to put them in more danger? Hmm, but no, that cannot be – if they were already so close, and were able to force them into telling them, they would just chased us down before we got to Corinthe. Perhaps they did but due to us taking the wrong direction for awhile we may have missed them pursuing us? But that does not explain the posters – the posters did not depict our new shawls which we would have gotten from Portneu View, but then the posters did not look at all like us from the start. Did they give them false information to save us from being caught? That would have only ended in their imprisonment or worse, and would not have been effective – Ra-Zara'chi, as speaker, was known to use quadruped Khajiit during interrogations to prevent them from lying, there is no reason he would not have done so still. That only means the posters must have been drawn from the artist's own memory and from someone Ra-Zara'chi mistakenly trusted – but without the knowledge of the new shawls from Portneu – so drawn from Torval, but if that is the case, how then would they have known the others were with Khinashi and Dagi and that we left to Corinthe?

But wait, this one had sent a letter to Mother in Torval before we left...If the courier was fast, it would have reached them early in the first day since our departure, and if Mother was for some reason unable to receive the letter...How could this one not have suspected that?

"Oh no...This one thinks she figured out how they know where we are..."

"What? What is it then?"

"The letter Khinashi wrote – if Mother was in jail, or...Well the letter would have been given to someone of authority instead. If Ra-Zara'chi heard it was from Khinashi, no doubt he would have read it. That must be how he knows where we are."

"Oh, right, if he killed his own brother for power he probably isn't above reading someone else's letter..."

"J'shabi, this one's Mother may not even be alive...If she is that means she would be in jail, she might not know we are...She might think we are dead."

"You don't know any of that, Khinashi, it's not safe to assume, and besides, whatever happened, we'll be able to fix it once we get our plea heard by the Clan Mother here."

"This one is starting to think the Clan Mother may not hear us out..."

Suddenly Khinashi feels a thump on her head and sees a rock fall to the ground next to her. Putting a hand to her head to ease the pain the pebble brought she attunes her ears and eyes to her surroundings, finding whomever would do this.

"Psst, over here!" A low, strained voice says in not much more than a whisper. Khinashi only heard it from having tilted her ears in that direction at that moment. It came from a nearby alleyway, too dark to see – but Khinashi strains her eyes to see in the dark, making the light outside of it blinding, and sees the form of Dagi with his hood completely concealing his face from tilting his head.

"Khinashi? What is it?" J'shabi asks, as she and the others realized this one had stopped walking.

Khinashi signals for the others to follow her and they retreat into the alleyway with Dagi.

"Dagi? What are you doing here? This one thought you were going to stay outside of the city."

"That was true, until he noticed wanted posters being put up around the walls everywhere." Dagi pulls out a rolled up piece of paper and flattens it out for us to see.

"We've already seen this, Dagi, we were taken in by the guards but we managed to convince them we weren't the ones they were looking for."

"No, you have not seen this before – you have seen its copies. This one can tell it is the original."

"So what? They look the same, no? Someone must have had a very bad memory of what we look like."

"Perhaps, but Dagi can see more. This picture has been altered in some way, can you not see? Look at the lines – you can tell the strokes are from two different people. Someone had changed this just before it was sent to Corinthe to have copies made of it, and they have not yet realized this."

J'shabi grabs ahold of the poster and takes a closer look.

"Yuck, is that really what I'd look like if I had tattooed my face and had a tail? And the way they drew my claws, extended and sharp makes me look like a bloodthirsty murderer – and...am I really that fat?"

Suddenly the poster levitates out of J'shabi's hands and slaps her in the face, with which is followed by a snigger from Smallpaws, until Jahirr steps one of his forepaws on his head, bringing him to the ground.

Dagi picks up the poster and rolls it back up to return to a pocket within his desert jacket.

"Anyway...Had this not happened, you would likely not have walked out of that jailhouse until execution time..."

Khinashi sends a prayer of thanks to whomever had done this, as well as one in hopes that they also are working to keep Mother safe.

"...But it will not save you forever." Dagi continues. "The guard now know you are in the city, it may not take them long for the ones at Torval to realize the posters were altered, and may already have sent another courier to bring a correct version. You cannot continue walking about the city in the open without some sort of disguise and alias. Even that may not be enough for the guards now that they have seen you, but it should work for anyone else."

"We also figured out how they may have known we came to Corinthe, Dagi..."

"As does this one. You know, for one whom studies the various forms of Khajiit so much as you say, you really do underestimate your fellow feline's hearing. You are lucky no one else was nearby but Dagi to hear it. Do not worry about it, you were concerned for your Mother as was natural, no one can blame you."

This one wishes she could agree with him, but it is hard not to feel guilty when your actions have such major consequences.

"So where do we get these disguises then? We won't have to steal them will we?"

"Thankfully, no. The bazaar here has many merchants which sell many things, clothes included. The Moon Sugar we were given a supply of from Portneu View can be used as a currency here in place of coin. You may be used to using gold for everything in the south, but the further north you go, the less that is necessary."

Ma'krin growls in disapproval of the suggestion of using the Moon Sugar as currency.

"Oh come on, Ma'krin," this one says. " It will be for a good cause, and we do not have to spend all of it."

Ma'krin still does not seem happy with the idea, but we have no choice.

"Khinashi thinks it would be best if we split up. It will draw more attention if a group of a disguised Suthay, Ohmes, Dagi, Alfiq, Pahmar-raht and two Senche are walking around together when a group of exactly those type of Khajiit are wanted and being searched for within the city."

"I guess that's a good point...you're better at talking than I am, maybe you should go see the Clan Mother? I can go buy the disguises for us."

This one almost agreed to that suggestion, but then remembered Khinashi would probably be the easiest to recognize even in a disguise, due to her missing tooth and striped fur. If the Clan Mother does not agree to hear our concerns, it would be more dangerous if Khinashi had been the one to talk to her. J'shabi could pass for a Bosmer under certain circumstances even, and her fur is plain and common – easier to blend in after we get a disguise.

"No, this one will buy the disguises, you see the Clan Mother. You are an Ohmes with plain fur, this one is a striped Suthay and a broken tooth, she would be recognized easier, it is better if the Clan Mother does not see this one until after she has agreed to hear our concerns...Hmm, Smallpaws and Jahirr, you should go with her – Ma'krin and Ma'ketra, you can come with this one to buy the disguises. And you, Dagi? Will you go back outside?"

"No. This one thinks now it may be better to be close by, he will watch for signs of anything that could be of importance. Once you all have finished your tasks, meet this one behind the Inn to the west of the Bazaar. There may be something else you should know, but this one is not certain yet until he checks."

Khinashi looks around the group, and all seem to be satisfied with how she split us up. This one does not know why she chose those whom she did, but it felt correct, an instinctive sense of knowing who would be best at which place doing which task. This one nodded, which all took as a unanimous agreement that we should begin, and set off on our ways.

* * *

The sound of people yelling and complaining became louder every second as we approached the Clan Mother's house on the far side of town. Even the bazaar was relatively quiet for how busy it looked, it was like someone took all of the sound of the rest of the city and closed it off around here, and it showed on Kishari's face as we came within distance.

Smallpaws covered his ears with his paws and Jahirr looked unsettled by the commotion. Khajiit of all forms, making all sounds imaginable, surrounded Kishari from the steps to her house. She tried to speak over them and answer questions one at a time but it seems to not be working – and any time she starts talking, someone else interrupts her to mention how she's wrong about something.

It really didn't look like we'd ever be able to get a chance to speak to her alone this way.

I tugged on the shawl of one of the Khajiit standing in the back, he was an old Cathay with his arms crossed and a look of impatience and frustration that startled me a bit when he turned around.

"Uh, excuse me-"

"What do you want?" He said with an unfriendly tone.

"I just um, wanted to know, why-"

"That is what we would all like to know, but the Clan Mother does not tell us!" He interrupts.

"No, I mean, not that, but-"

"It is obvious why, she just does not want to admit it," another Khajiit, an equally elderly female Suthay-raht, says upon noticing our 'conversation', "the moons have left us because we have betrayed them, we were given a chance of redemption to remove all outside influence from our lands properly upon the new age, but we have failed. We may not be a part of the empire anymore, but it still holds sway here, and Jone and Jode have punished us for this treason."

"What? But the moons aren't gone, it's just a phase-"

"That is what the Clan Mother and the guards would have you believe, because they do not want to admit it is their fault they have let Elsweyr fall so far!" The Suthay-raht continues.

"When the old Mane signed the treaty with the empire to give away Leyawinn, he shamed us all! Our ancestors earned that land west of the Xylo in the five-year war, they did not fight for five years only to lose the same amount of land on the other side!"

"The Renrija Krin were doing us a favour! We cast them out like the fools we were decades ago, but they are back! They can bring the Moons back! They can restore our faith to Jone and Jode so they return!"

"Renrija vaba shal, Renrjia vaba var!"

Amidst the babbling of the complaining Khajiit, a loud roar echoes over all and suddenly all of them fall silent, completely calm and walk off as if remembering they all have better things to do than complain to the Clan Mother.

Knowing better, I look down to Smallpaws and see that he looks exhausted from casting that calm spell, and crouch and pick him up so he can rest in my arms as we continue.

As the crowd disperses completely, Kishari lets out a deep sigh of relief, until she looks up and sees Smallpaws, Jahirr and I still in front of her house.

"Oh...This one knew it was too good to be true. Fine, what do you want? Are you here to complain about the missing moons too? Are you here to make Kishari's life miserable? This one just wants to relax in peace and quiet before nightfall comes..."

"I'm sorry to disturb you, but it's important, and, no, it's not about the moons, or anything in Corinthe. I have to talk to you about Torval, but it would be better if it wasn't...out here." I say, looking around for anyone who might be able to overhear us.

"Hmm, is that so? Well, this one will listen, but she only deals with problems in Corinthe...Still, come inside and we will talk, Kishari's legs are hurting from all this standing anyway."

* * *

"Hmm, what do you think? She might like the Anequinan style clothes, the desert jacket and collar would suit her well, but this one will always prefer the Pelletine garbs."

Khinashi holds out some clothes over her to see how they would look, Ma'ketra nods approvingly, and Ma'krin looks bored.

"And what for you?" This one says, looking at Ma'krin, "Will you wear a shawl and body wrap to match your sister? Or would you prefer to wear something unique?"

Ma'krin shrugs from his resting position and closes his eyes.

"Hey, do not fall asleep now! You need to choose something..."

Ma'krin gave no response.

"Fine, something different this one guesses."

Khinashi goes through the various selection of clothes hung and displayed about and picks something out in Ma'krin's size, and does not spend much time looking at the designs for he would not care so much. The others whom are not here could not choose their disguise, but this one did her best to pick something they would like, and if they do not, then oh well, for it is merely temporary anyway.

This one placed the bunches of clothes onto the counter of the stall merchant in the bazaar, a small Ohmes whom could not see this one from the other side of the pile while he sat down.

"150 Septims" he says at last, after counting the amount and type of clothes – nothing too expensive, but garb for several people adds up in cost. Khinashi has never had that much gold on her before. This one always thought it silly we still use the Septim as a currency despite no longer being a part of the Empire for almost a century.

"Um, Khajiit was going to pay in Moon Sugar instead, if that is okay? Or does this one need to exchange it somewhere first-"

"6 ounces" the little Ohmes says from behind his counter, before lifting up some weight contraption and a bag full of Moon Sugar.

This one takes off a small bag tied to her waist and pours the sugar in, but it is not enough. The Ohmes gives this one an impatient look.

"Sorry, just one moment?"

Khinashi walks to Ma'krin, who is holding most of our food supplies, which includes Moon Sugar, and tugs at the bag containing it, which does not budge since Ma'krin is sleeping on it.

"Hey, get up for one moment, this one needs more Moon Sugar."

Ma'krin growls in response, telling this one he heard her, but still does not move, still pretending to be asleep.

Ma'ketra nudges him to try and help and he begins to totter back and forth. Khinashi finally tugs the bag out from beneath the hulking Ma'krin but propels herself backwards and loses her balance, crashing into a nearby Khajiit who was walking past.

We fall to the ground, and this one hears a squish as she realizes the Khajiit – an Ohmes-raht boy, perhaps a bit older than Khinashi – had been carrying some sort of sweet delicacy - a cake - which he had landed fast first in. Khinashi drops the bag of Moon Sugar and goes to help him up.

"Oh, this one is so sorry, she did not mean to do that, my friend - the Senche, he would not move, and-"

"Do not worry. It is not the first time today Ja'skar has had food thrown in his face, it will probably not be the last." The Ohmes-raht says in a voice that can only be described as depressed. He could not see this one well for his entire face was now covered in Moon Sugar frosting, but this one could see that he wore the clothes of an Anequinan noble – of which his personality from his statement did not seem to befit.

This one sought to lighten the mood, and so wiped off a bit of the frosting from his face and tasted it.

"Mmm, this is quite good, you know? You have good taste."

"Thank you. It was to be a gift to someone but, well now it will not be. Perhaps that is just as well..." The Ohmes-raht said these words as he walks away, and Khinashi cannot help but feel guilt that she had hurt him.

But this was no time for such thoughts. Khinashi picked up the bag of Moon Sugar and returned to the clothing stall owner to complete her payment.

* * *

"...And so that's about it, really...We were hoping you might be able to help us return to Torval and confront Ra-Zara'chi."

"My my, that was quite some tale. You are...quite brave to come here, if this is true, you are wanted by this Ra-Zara'chi, whom you call the imposter Mane? He seeks you out, is he quite powerful?"

"Well, I don't know, but I guess with everyone thinking he's the real Mane and all, the guards wouldn't have any reason to turn against him."

"This is bad, very bad...Child, this one is sorry, but Kishari does not know what she can do, she wants to help you, but..."

Kishari opens her mouth to speak, but closes it again, an expression of fear and guilt on her face as she turns to look out of the window.

"But what?"

"Ah, would you perhaps like some milk? You must all be tired from having walked so far, and very thirsty. Perhaps your friends would want some too?"

"No thanks, I can wait until later, you don't need to go through any trouble-"

"This one insists. Please, sit down, have a drink. Relax. You are safe here in Corinthe."

I sit down as she requests, and Smallpaws jumps off, having restored enough energy from his earlier spell casting. He wanders about the house as Kishari pours out some milk at a table and stirs it.

"Are we, though? We were told from the guard captain that things were pretty rough ever since the unexpected phase of the New Moons began, and outside, it looked like there were a bunch of unhappy people."

"Ah yes, this one's husband, Tarel, likes to exaggerate things sometimes...As for the people, well they will come to realize it is just a phase that will pass, nothing more, and things will go back to normal, perhaps even tonight."

"I guess so, he said you've been on edge recently about it, but you seem pretty calm about it now."

"This one has had a lot of work to do recently. Normally Kishari's apprentice would help her take care of things...she was like a daughter to us." Kishari's voice drifts off with that last sentence, as she stares vacantly.

"Was?"

"Here, this warm milk should refresh you all. Kishari even added some herbs to improve the taste."

The Clan Mother handed me a cup, and placed two bowls on the ground for Jahirr and Smallpaws. Kishari looked expectantly with a smile at us. Jahirr sniffed the milk for a few seconds and then growled just before I took a sip, the growl was aimed at me.

"What is it, Jahirr? Does it taste bad?"

Jahirr shook his head and tipped over both of the bowls of milk, then pushed me from the chair making me spill mine.

"Jahirr, what are you-"

"Hey, get away from there, Alfiq!" Kishari shouts, upon turning around to see Smallpaws looking over a piece of paper. She runs toward him but he picks up the paper with his mouth and jumps out of a nearby window. While she has her back turned, Jahirr bites my hand and tugs me away from the chair, and then out of the house. He signals for me to follow him, confused as I am I have no other idea of what to do and so we run. We just run. Why are we running?

"Where do you think you are going? Come back here!" Kishari shouts from outside her house. Several people look over at us and judge whether or not to chase after, but then seem to remember their concerns with the Clan Mother and instead decide to huddle around her. Within moments the scene we saw as we approached her house repeats itself again.

We run all the way through the Bazaar with several guards eyeing us suspiciously, and take a sharp turn behind a building at the edge. I look around once more as we do to see if anyone's chasing after us, and forget to look back in time and end up crashing into someone beneath an awning at an empty stall.

"Oh, I'm sorry, I hope you're alright, I didn't mean to-" the words cut off as I realize who it is that I bumped over.

Khinashi hefts herself up from the ground and dusts off her eloquent disguise.

"Oh, hey Khinashi, I almost didn't recognize you for a second in that thing. That's a bit fancy of a disguise though isn't it, how much did that cost? And where are the others?"

"How dare you call this one by that name! La'zanja is certainly not Khinashi, and demands recompense for pushing her over."

"So you're going by La'zanja now? Was La'nashi not convincing enough? But then you did go by that name with the guards..."

"What are you babbling on about, peasant? This one is La'zanja, not Khinashi, not La'nashi - La'zanja. Just who are you to go about addressing the heir of lord Ra-Dahadirr in such a disrespectful manner? Give La'zanja one good reason she should not have you hauled away by the guards to the barracks, hmm?"

"Wait..."

I take a closer look at her, and realize she doesn't have a missing tooth. But her fur pattern and eye colour are nearly identical to Khinashi's. Only her tooth and the fact that her hair is down, and her clothes make her look any different from her. I guess maybe she does sound a bit more high-pitched and is maybe a tad older too, though.

"I'm very sorry, I thought you were someone else. I'll be going now!"

"Hmph. You will be spared only this once, peasant." La'zanja calls out as we run off into the distance.

* * *

Khinashi sneaks through the alleyways, checking to make sure the coast is clear before signaling the others to follow, and slowly we make our way to the spot Dagi had mentioned to meet at, except no Dagi is found.

This one hears more running footsteps, and so presses against the wall to remain hidden from whomever it is, but the footsteps stop as they pass by, and turn sharply into their direction.

"Ah, J'shabi, Jahirr, so you have finished as well then, yes? Wait, where is Smallpaws?"

"I'm not sure, he ran off when-ow!" J'shabi holds a hand to her head as a rock falls on her. We all look up from where it fell and see a rope being thrown over the ledge of the roof of the Inn by a figure at the top, beckoning us to climb.

This one looks to J'shabi and shrugs, and then looks to the others.

"Well, this one guesses you should stay here, out of sight. Dagi must be up there and for some reason would prefer we follow. It should only be for a moment."

Jahirr gives no response, Ma'krin looks happy to be able to relax in the shade for the time being, but Ma'ketra looks worried, and walks up to J'shabi with an inquisitive look.

"What is it Ma'ketra?"

As an answer to J'shabi's question she lifts up a paw and extends her claws for a moment, her way of signifying she asks of Smallpaws Sharpclaws.

"Oh, don't worry about Paws, he was okay last I saw him, he just took a different direction than us, he knows where we were going to meet, so he should be here soon, I'm sure."

Ma'ketra looks pleased to hear this. This one grabs ahold of the rope and begins the climb up to the roof, with J'shabi following close behind. It does not take long before we reach the top, and it is a simple matter to climb and roll onto the flat roof. Khinashi sees Dagi overlooking an open part of the roof which lets sun shine in, he does not move as we approach.

"Dagi, what are you doing up here?" Khinashi whispers, knowing by his stance that he seeks to remain quiet and out of sight.

He does not respond, only holds a finger up to silence us, but does not seem against us peering over the sunroof ourselves to see what he is watching.

This one lays down and rests her head over the ledge, the inside of the Inn is quite beautiful, the sunroof allows for a large tropical tree and lush gardens to grow in the center, to provide the freshest of fruits. Small square tables are set up about the ground floor, mostly packed, with a counter near the entrance where the Innkeepers make drinks and food and sell tents and rooms, the rooms themselves are positioned on a higher floor reached by a staircase that follows the wall. The rooms have balconies from which the Inn-stayers can see the goings-on of the city.

"Be careful not to put your head out too far, and be ready to move, they could see us from up here." Dagi whispers to us.

"Who could see us? Who are we watching, Dagi?" This one asks.

"The one who killed my Father, or one of them anyway. The black-furred Dagi-raht in the corner."

"Dazlah..." Khinashi says his name with malice.

"So he has a name." Dagi sounds satisfied, knowing now what to call his enemy.

"This one overheard them at the Festival, it seems he has recovered, but what of his companion, Rajirr, the Cathay-raht? Where is he?"

"Dagi has not seen any Cathay-raht that matches his description, only those two Khajiit at his table."

"Hmm, it is possible Rajirr may not have survived the festival, when this one knocked him out, he remained unconscious until Khinashi burnt down the palace."

J'shabi shook her head at this in disapproval, she understands Khinashi was filled with fury, from her story of the events, but burning down the palace – possibly killing dozens, both guilty and innocent, is an unnerving prospect, and not something this one likes to remember.

"So what is he doing here? Any idea?"

"We will find out soon enough." Dagi responds. "Smallpaws had arrived before the rest of you, he was carrying a piece of paper which says some alarming things, but has been unable to explain the full meaning of it. This one saw Dazlah and his companions enter just then – and so Dagi suggested he listen in on them to learn of their plans. An Alfiq can get close enough to them to overhear anything they say without arousing suspicion, and Dagi has anonymously paid for some drink to make them more likely to say things worthwhile."

"You seem to know quite a lot about espionage, Dagi." J'shabi says, suddenly.

"Mother taught this one well in her limited time to teach him."

"Did you not say your Mother was a hunter, though?" This one asks.

"Of a sort."

The conversation ended there, and we returned to watching the scene below. This one could see Smallpaws hiding behind a bush near the center of the Inn, or at least, his tail that stuck out from the other side – unseen by the ones whom he spies upon.

Stranger yet, this one sees a white-furred Alfiq, perhaps female, stalking about the outer edge of the garden, approaching Smallpaws.

Khinashi looks to her left and right, and sees their eyes following as well, who is this Alfiq?

"La'vani? What are you doing?" Dagi whispers, even lower than usual.

The white-furred Alfiq – La'vani – nudges Smallpaws and pushes him out from the cover of the bushes, and begins playfully toying with him, rubbing up against him and pushing him over, to which Smallpaws seems confused of this manner. They seem to be signing their language to each other, but Khinashi has no idea of seeing from this far away what they might mean, but the result of it is La'vani walking toward Dazlah an his companions, to which Smallpaws runs and tackles her to stop her, or at least he tried to anyway – La'vani broke out into a dash and the two Alfiq seem to be chasing each other about the Inn.

"What is happening? What is La'vani doing, Dagi? And how do you know her name?"

"La'vani is...very playful, and lives up to her title. She is the sister of the direct Pelletine heir and this one knows her because...well that is not important. Knowing her, she must have become interested in Smallpaws and threatened to break his cover to the ones he was spying on, if he did not play a game with her, it is...what she does."

"But what of the mission?" This one asks, but before anyone could answer, Khinashi heard a growl from below as Ma'ketra roared in anger. The two Alfiq split apart and Ma'ketra chased after La'vani whilst Smallpaws made a break for it. It was not long before the residents of the Inn became aware of the chaos and Dazlah, his companions, among others, retreated from the Inn.

Dagi moved his head back and sighed in defeat.

"Ma'ketra...Ugh, why did you have to do that?" J'shabi vents.

"She could not have known, J'shabi, it is not her fault."

"Let us just hope Smallpaws heard something useful while it lasted."

* * *

Jahirr finishes writing the final line with his paw and dips it into the water bucket to clean it. Smallpaws never did like writing, and so chose to sign the information he learned to Jahirr, who – with noticeable annoyance that Smallpaws refused to do it himself – wrote out everything on a canvas behind the Inn, while the rest of us put on our disguises, and helped those who could not do it themselves with theirs.

Jahirr gave a signal to let us know he had finished, and Dagi, whom had no need of a disguise, picked up the parchment and began to read it.

"Hmm, so indeed, Ra-Zara'chi sent Dazlah and some 'smile bandit' to hunt us down and kill us. It seems he – perhaps rightly so – did not think the guards were capable of the task by themselves."

"Smile bandit? That does not sound correct, Dagi...Perhaps it is meant to be read in a different language? That would be Krin Renrij in Ta'agra." Khinashi said, before he could continue.

"The Renrija Krin? I heard that being said around town earlier, some kind of group of Khajiit, one that was respected by some but cast out by others."

"Ah, of course, the Renrija Krin," This one began. "They were a group of thugs - to some seen as freedom fighters, to others, seen as terrorists - back around the end of the last era. They did not like that the Mane of that time ceded the eastern section of Elsweyr to Cyrodiil and wished to take it back. They eventually disbanded following the first few decades into the Fourth Era, however, when Bravil attaced Leyawiin and civil war erupted in Elsweyr after the assassination of the previous Mane – er, the one before Rid-Rawl'vah."

This one finished, satisfied with her recounting of the rise and fall of the Renrija Krin, but she became confused when the she received stares from everyone that made her feel like she said something unnecessary.

"What?" Khinashi said at last.

"Well, whatever the matter, they also seemed to have been duped by the altered posters. They realize this however, and have come up with another plan of action to kill us."

"And what might that be, hmm? If they do not know what we look like."

"Indirectly. By igniting a riot that could potentially kill hundreds within the city, with the sole purpose of killing us in the crossfire. It might have worked, too, had we not overheard that bit of information."

"From what Tarel at-Taneth says, it does not seem like a riot will need any igniting to take place...It may well happen upon its own accord. The sudden phase of New Moons has people assuming the worst, and the two ruling tribes apparently are at odds with each other over who will rule during this time." Khinashi says solemnly, knowing that an event could take place at which hundreds could die unnecessarily.

"Did the Clan Mother agree to hear us out, at least? Perhaps she should know of this."

Before J'shabi could speak, Jahirr growls and shakes his head distastefully.

"I'm not really sure...It seemed to be going alright for awhile, but she kept mentioning being unable to do anything about it – and yet, she also acted like everything will be okay. Then Jahirr and Smallpaws started acting strange and we ended up running away."

"Hm, so that letter was for the Clan Mother, Dagi guesses? That does not...bode well."

J'shabi looks startled. "Why? What did it say?"

"It indicated that the author was holding someone dear to them hostage somewhere and that if they interfered or informed anyone of this, that the hostage would be killed. It also said that should people mentioning anything in relation to events in Torval that differed from the official explanation, be found within the city, they could be traded to them for the safety of the hostage. The only form of signature was a the symbol of a black hand."

"A black hand?" This one asks.

"It would have been Dazlah, most likely, or one of the others – clearly a further trap to catch us. They knew we would inform the Clan Mother of the events at Torval and they arrived here before us, it should come as no surprise." Dagi responds.

"So what do we do? If the Clan Mother is being threatened, the guards will be looking for us, a riot is almost assuredly going to take place, and assassins are hunting us down...What can we do?" J'shabi looks between us all for an answer, even to those whom cannot speak.

"Khinashi thinks there are two options...One - We stop the riot before it starts. If we could find and free the hostage, and prevent the riot somehow, we would earn the trust of the Clan Mother and the guards – they would hear us out, they would listen to us and no longer have any reason not to be able to help us with Ra-Zara'chi in Torval."

"Right, and the other option? Because I don't really think we can do the first..." J'shabi says.

"The other option is that we flee Corinthe to save ourselves, knowing that hundreds could die all in the name of some assassins hunting us down. We would be wanted all throughout Elsweyr and have no further means of being able to acquire aid to stop Ra-Zara'chi."

"Not the best set of options there Khinashi...You can't think of anything else that doesn't involve doing the impossible or giving up entirely?"

"Actually, Dagi thinks we may just be able to achieve that. This one has been thinking this over for awhile in case it came to it."

Khinashi looks to Dagi with hope. Does he have a plan, then? Usually it is this one who makes the plans, but Dagi knows Corinthe, he knows the people here, of course he knows.

"Well you sound pretty optimistic, lets hear it."

"When Dagi lived in Corinthe, the two ruling tribes were great friends with each other. This one does not know what has led to break them apart, but he knows that their still must be a semblance of reason between them, we just need to convince them to make peace."

"So what? You think we can just walk up and talk to the leaders and everything will be okay?"

"Not exactly. They would never listen to outsiders...but they would listen to one of their own, one of their children, perhaps."

"Why would their children be any more welcoming to the idea than themselves?"

"When Dagi lived in Corinthe, this one knew two children from both tribes whom were very close. From what this one has overheard upon his return, it seems these two were planned to be married together not too long ago, but that for some reason, something went wrong between them and they have not been on speaking terms since, and it has only worsened the relationship between their families."

"So...?"

"So if you could manage to befriend them, and bring them back together, they would have reason to want peace between their families, and could convince their parents not to have war."

"So what do you know of these children, hmm? What are their names?"

"The boy is an Ohmes-raht named Ja'skar from Anequina. He is a tad shy and insecure of himself, he lacks confidence but has always been creative and artistic. The girl is a Suthay, she looks quite like you actually, Khinashi. She is called La'zanja – the sister of La'vani, and she is..."

"A jerk." J'shabi says, bluntly.

"Well, that is quite harsh..."

"I ran into her in the bazaar earlier after running away from the Clan Mother, she didn't seem very nice."

"This one as well has seen the one you call Ja'skar, we did not have the best first impression, Khinashi accidentally made him fall face first into a cake he was carrying. It did taste quite good though."

"Perhaps you would both be better suited to meeting the ones whom you did not already run into."

"Fine with me." J'shabi says.

"What of you, Dagi? Perhaps you would be able to talk to them – you know them both better than us."

"Eh, this one would really prefer not to, if possible. If either of them knew that this one was in the city...It may complicate things. Besides, while securing the trust and respect between the two tribes will prevent a riot initiating naturally, Dagi will look to scout down and stop Dazlah and the others from igniting it themselves, as well as finding the hostage they are holding."

"Then this one thinks Jahirr should go with you, Dagi. He can help sniff them out if he can find their trace, or perhaps one of the hostage, if you can learn who it is that is being held."

Jahirr nods, approving of the suggestion.

"Ma'krin, you should go with J'shabi, from what this one knows of the Anequinan tribal clans, it is that they respect strength and skill, both of which you posses when combined."

"This one can agree to that." Dagi says.

Ma'krin slowly stands up and stretches, yawning to prepare for his mission.

"Smallpaws and Ma'ketra, this one knows you two were not completely responsible for what happened at the Inn, but still, perhaps it may be safer if you were not quite involved directly this time. You can watch around the city and inform of us of any new developments."

Smallpaws and Ma'ketra look sad at this suggestion, but there is a lot at risk. If one of us have any mistakes, hundreds could die, and we may be unable to stop Ra-Zara'chi.

"So then, is that it? Do we all know what we are doing?" This one asks the group, looking to everyone.

"So let me get this straight. We have to somehow convince both Ja'skar and La'zanja to well...not hate each other anymore, so they can convince their parents not to hate each other anymore, while Dagi and Jahirr have to scout down and stop Dazlah and the Renrija Krin from starting a riot, which might start anyway if we can't convince the two to make peace...All before nightfall in several hours, when Kishari makes the call on what to do during the New Moon phase, and without getting caught by the guards, the Clan Mother, or Dazlah and the Renrija Krin in the meantime."

"Yes, that is about it really." Dagi says.

"Then let us begin."


	10. Chapter 9: A Tale of Two Kitties (P2)

**Chapter 9: A Tale of Two Kitties (Part 2)**

I take a look up at the sun and sigh, it may be only just past noon now, but we have so much to do before evening, and if we don't...Well, there's no use in worrying about that. We'll just have to do the best we can.

I pull up my hood over my head and signal for Ma'krin to follow. He walks out from the alleyway begrudgingly. He doesn't look at all happy with the body wrap and robes Khinashi picked out for him. He never was one for bright, vibrant coloured things, as far as I could tell.

But I quite like this new outfit myself, it's similar to what Dagi wears – what most wear in the northern part of Elsweyr. A long white desert jacket with a wide collar, with various colours on the garments under the jacket, and long dark leggings. It's a far-cry different to my usual outfit back in Torval, but yet, it feels like I've always worn it, and I've just now noticed. It also has my favorite colour, red, dyed on parts of it.

As we keep walking, it almost feels like we walked out of the city grounds and into the outskirts, with all of the tents propped up around us, but it can't be, Dagi said the Khajepako lived in their own quarter just north of the bazaar, and the ground hasn't sunken over the edge of the plateau. Looking closer at the tents, it looks like they're just for show – they're nailed into the ground in a way that suggests they won't be moving, and that they've been there for a long time. Inside the tents, some wooden interior exists beneath them, but if there's actual walls and roofs of these houses, why bother with the tents at all? It must be symbolic about something, but still, it seems kind of silly.

The people here look less fearful and cautious than those in the main part of town we saw, they appear more aggressive and angered. Some are sparring with each other, either with swords or claws, some are pulling in some large dead beasts, slain from a hunting trip probably, hmph. Most seem to be huddled together in crowds or walking to and from somewhere. There's no sign of Ja'skar though, or at least how he was described.

A sudden roar nearly topples me off of my feet from shock, and I'm torn away from the scene I was viewing as I realize a white and black striped Pahmar approaches us. Their roars are only supposed to be seen as greetings between talkers and walkers in this context, but it still felt like it implied more than that.

"Oh, hello to you too." I say to the Pahmar, who flicks his eyes in a menacing matter, as if my words answered a question in his mind about us.

He growls and points his head over to the Bazaar and scrapes his back feet against the ground. I don't know much about their sign language, but the context was clear enough. He wanted us to leave.

But Ma'krin only stepped forward, and the Pahmar's head shifted from me to him, and the two looked darkly unto each other. Ma'krin nor Ma'ketra may have undergone their growth spurt yet, but Ma'krin still towered over the smaller Pahmar, especially with his large mane making him look even bigger. Ma'krin was almost as tall as Khinashi and I, still smaller than Jahirr, but this Pahmar was only half that. He may not be an adult yet either.

The two share some conversation in sign language, of which I have no idea what they're saying, but Ma'krin keeps shaking his head every few moments, and the Pahmar's expression seems to be becoming less angered.

The Pahmar circles around us, as if trying to judge our intentions one final time, but as he passes by Ma'krin, he suddenly just starts laughing – in his own Pahmar way, and now it's Ma'krin's turn to be angry.

Ma'krin roars and scratches at his clothing, perhaps he made fun of what he was wearing? The Pahmar rolls on his back laughing uncontrollably, and Ma'krin's eyes are now filled with hatred. I see his claws extend and his hind legs prepare to leap, but the Pahmar doesn't.

So I grab on Ma'krin's back and try to hold him back before he does something we'll both regret – but trying to hold a raging Senche back seems almost pointless. Ma'krin leaps forward despite my efforts, as if he didn't even notice, but just before he reaches him, the Pahmar rolls out of the way in time and Ma'krin lands into the dirt, letting up a cloud of dust, with me falling to my face after losing Ma'krin's grip. The Pahmar, now with his fur standing on end, his tail whipping back and forth and all of his teeth bared, circles around Ma'krin, who does the same.

As I look up, I'm about to call out for them to stop, but a different voice beats me to it.

"Now now, Haskir, there is no need for that. Do not trouble yourself with them, they do not appear to be worth the effort."

The voice belongs to a Tojay boy, a teenager perhaps, who walks up to the three of us. He wears a garb similar to mine, except with a blue colour scheme. The Pahmar – Haskir's - fur and expression returns to normal.

As I stand myself up and dust off my clothes, I notice now that this Tojay is almost twice my height. I have to look down to make sure I'm standing on level ground with him to confirm that, and my gaze returns to him. I remember what Khinashi said, and realize he unmistakably has fur, dark brown actually. So if he has fur he must be a Tojay-raht. He's as tall as a Cathay-raht, with the legs and ears of a Suthay, but the face of an Ohmes, man or mer. It would be almost frightening standing next to him, if I hadn't already seen what a Senche-raht looks like a year or so ago.

I must have been lost in thought and missed something that was said, because the Tojay-raht snapped his fingers and looked at me.

"What is it? What dealings do you have with the Khajepako to bring you here at such a time as this? Speak."

"What? Oh, I...We were just..." For a moment, I actually forgot what we were doing here at all. I take a moment to think, and notice that – like the Pahmar – this Tojay-raht seemed surprised to hear the sound of my voice.

"You speak with an accent and words of lands far away, yet you wear the garb of a desert native. You are a spy."

"What? We're not spies! No, we're from Torval. We just came by to visit a friend, his name is...Ja'skar. We just wanted to talk to him- and see how he's doing." I say, trying as hard as I possibly can to make that sound believable. It's not all a lie, yet why does it feel like it is?

The Tojay-raht stares at me with a serious face for a few moments more, until he shakes his head and laughs.

"This one does not know who sent you, but they seem to have chosen very poorly. You do not make for a very good spy at all, you know? But this one is bored so he will humour you, little spy. Why do you really wish to speak to this one's brother?"

"But that really is it, we just want to talk to him!" I say, a bit louder than I probably should have. I don't like being accused of lying, even if it's not actually completely false this time.

I sigh, and start over."We've heard he's been having some hard times lately, we wanted to see if we could help him out."

I wasn't actually so sure about that, but from what Khinashi and Dagi said, it was a good guess.

"So you persist with that story! This is...interesting. A good spy would have ceded defeat and tried to convince this one it would be worthwhile not to call the guards on them, but then, a good spy would have no reason to speak to Ja'skar at all, for he is weak, stupid, and is of no use to anyone."

For a few moments, I didn't know how to respond to that – how to work out of this situation. What was stopping him from calling the guards on us? Even if we could take them in a fight, which is no guarantee in itself, it would only alarm the entirety of the Khajepako tribe of our presence and our mission would be over before it even started.

"But he's your brother. Isn't that a bit mean to talk about him like that?" I say, purely only to stall him if anything, while thinking of a better route of action.

"Perhaps. But it is the truth, and he will not become any stronger to hear pretty lies painted about him. He is the heir to our tribe, and may one day be chieftain. He must become strong if he is to lead us."

"You sound a bit resentful of that."

"Then you are deaf, little spy. Ja'khan respects his brother and our traditions deeply. Ja'skar may only be two years older than this one, and Ja'khan is undoubtedly more prepared to take on such a leadership, but it is not our way to forgo our traditions of succession, and so this one wishes his brother all the best on that destiny."

"So you're perfectly alright with-"

"Your attempts at stalling are starting to bore this one, by the way. Tell this one: Why should Ja'khan not report you to the guards for spying and trespassing?"

My mouth hung open for a few seconds as I tried to think of how to answer that, until at last, I had an idea.

"Well, you said it yourself. You think your brother is weak, and you want him to become stronger, if you let us talk to him, we could help him out with that."

"For all this one knows you are here to kill him...But then, perhaps an assassination attempt would help improve his combat skills, and if you are as bad a warrior as you are a spy, perhaps even he could take you."

I growled with anger at his constant insults.

"Very well. You do not seem to be able to pose any actual danger, you may be allowed to speak with Ja'skar. This one will go ahead and inform the relevant persons to allow your entry, and for Ja'skar to be ready for any imminent combat should you turn out to be an assassin. We will be watching you, however, if you try anything, Haskir here will have the guards on your tail faster than you could realize the irony of that statement."

It took all of my energy and will to not kick him where it would hurt him most, and instead simply nod to show I understood.

* * *

This one has rehearsed her plan over in her head enough times now, Khinashi is ready. If the nobles here are like those from Torval, then the plan should work seamlessly. This one has no reason to believe La'zanja will act any different. The clothes Khinashi wears now will aid in the ruse that she is here on business to interview the Jah'ishir family heir, and it will be her chance to acquire fame on a provincial level, and go down in history. This will even allow her room to bring up Ja'skar and speak highly of him! It seems so simple in thought, all that is left is to execute the plan properly.

This one dusts off her clothes, straightens them and grooms as she walks down the alleyways. That will perhaps be the hardest part. Nobles spend hours tending to their fur, to keep it clean, soft, and flat, but Khinashi has never considered that so important, and it may show to them.

After a few moments, just as Khinashi was about to give up on trying to flatten a patch of fur on her face that was refusing to stay down, she feels a familiar thump on her head as another rock falls on her, which she knows now to be the unmistakable sign of Dagi. Looking up confirms these suspicions, as he stands over the edge of a building, but he shows no intention of wanting to speak, he merely points over to the edge, past the wall into the Bazaar.

Khinashi looks out from the wall to see what he is pointing to, and a gasp nearly escapes from her mouth as she pulls her head back, upon seeing the three figures approaching. The one in the center is unmistakably Dazlah, and the other two must be his henchmen, both wearing garb to disguise themselves as members of the Khajepako and Jah'ishir respectively. And they are nearing the corner.

This one frets, as all her fur that she worked so hard to keep flat now stands on end. Khinashi is unsure of what to do, until at last she notices a nearby barrel, and quickly jumps in it to hide just as the three of them turn the corner.

"What was that?" The voice Khinashi recognizes only so slightly as Dazlah says.

"What was what, Dazlah?" One of his henchmen responds.

"You did not hear anything just then? This one could have sworn..."

"Are you always this jumpy, hmm? Ever since we arrived in Corinthe, you have been looking over your shoulder every other minute. This one thought you were an ex-assassin, not a cowering kitten. Perhaps the Mane was wrong to send you."

"Shut up! It is just this place...This city. This one has left behind much here, and Dar'nari would just as soon try to kill this one if she saw him. Dazlah would prefer we stay here no longer than is necessary. Let us just kill and go, yes? No more sidetracking, the Inn was already enough of a risk."

"Who is this Dar'nari you keep bringing up anyway? She your sister or something?" A newer voice speaks at last.

"Hah! As if this one could ever be related to that jekosiit. No, she is not this one's sister."

"An ex-mate perhaps? It would explain some things."

"If you wish to keep your tongue then you will speak no more. Whatever we were is not important. She would vie for this one's blood if she ever saw him again. At least, she said as much. Quite often she meant such things."

Hmm, now that is an interesting piece of information. If only we could find this Dar'nari and inform her of Dazlah's whereabouts. That may make dealing with him all the more easier. Hopefully Dagi heard these words as well.

"But enough of that, as this one was saying...These alleyways make for a good means of escape. This one has evaded many a guard after an unsuccessful theft in the Bazaar..." Dazlah's voice dies down as the group walk away into the alley maze. Khinashi climbs out, only then noticing her fur starting to flatten. There is no more time for grooming or preparation, she will just have to make up some excuse if her appearance is ever brought into question.

Khinashi looks up to check for Dagi, but he must already be on other rooftops following the group ahead. Jahirr must be nearby as well. This one trusts Dagi and Jahirr to succeed, so Khinashi must focus on making sure her own task is accomplished.

* * *

If I could be anymore bored than I am now I'd be a tree- or rather, a plank. I can't tell how long it's been since we were told to sit back and 'watch' for anything while they go off and get to have all of the fun, but I know it's been too long. Aside from the occasional thief trying to run off with something and getting chased down by the guards, the bazaar has been a monotonous cycle of trading, and even the heated arguments from people trying to barter has lost its taste.

And I for one won't stand to watch it any longer.

I stretch out my arms and legs and leap off of my fluffy pillow companion, who by now has taken too much to her brother's habits and fallen asleep, and so I scratch at her nose and make annoying noises until she's forced to abandon her dreams.

She greets me with a snarl and full set of teeth.

"Oh come now, don't give me that look, there aren't many ways for me to wake up you giant Senches without inducing a little pain or frustration. You weren't even supposed to be sleeping anyway, we were told to watch the city in case we learn anything important, remember?" I sign these words to her, hoping she's awake enough to understand them correctly.

"Right. This one is sorry...It is just that nothing has happened so far worth watching, the eyes, they seek shelter from the light. In other words, Ma'ketra is bored."

"I can't really blame you, I'd have fallen asleep too, but your incredibly loud snoring kept me awake."

"But this one does not snore in her sleep!"

"How would you know? You would always be asleep when you do, you wouldn't be able to hear it."

"Well then, this one regrets to inform you that you snore as well, it has been a dark secret we have all been keeping from you, so much so that this one has heard the walkers call you Snorepaws."

"I can only imagine how that would sound when spoken, but I think it would have a certain ring to it. I approve."

"Well, has anything changed since? Or is this bustling bazaar still as boring as before?"

"No, and I don't think it will. So we might as well not bother, we might have better luck wandering around the city anyway, and it would give us the chance to do some sight-seeing."

"This one thinks you have already had enough sight-seeing."

"What's that supposed to mean?"

"Well, we were told to stay out of this for a reason, Snorepaws."

"I told you already, I had no choice. She was going to ruin my cover, Dagi wanted me to spy on them, I don't even know who that Alfiq was. Besides, it wasn't until you came running in that everything went to chaos."

"Well what was this one supposed to think, hmm? She did not know your purpose there."

"Why would it have mattered anyway?"

"That is a good question, Snorepaws, and one this one does not have an answer for."

For a moment I feel like I misinterpreted her signs, or at least their full meaning, but I decided not to clarify them.

"Is that going to become a real nickname then? Snorepaws?"

"No moreso than Smallpaws Sharpclaws already is."

"But...that is my actual name."

"Exactly."

"So how about it, then? Nothing's going to happen here, we'll have better luck learning something useful if we wander around the city, plus it'd be a lot less boring than staring at walkers buying and selling their junk all day."

"But we were told to stay here, what if they need to find us?"

"We're told a lot of things Ma'ketra, we don't always have to listen. If you want to stay here in case they do happen to look for us, fine, but I'm going to do some sight-seeing while I have the chance."

Ma'ketra stares at me and grumbles, the look I know so well by now, the one she always gives me when she knows she's lost the argument.

"Fine. This one will come with you, but we should return here if we do not find anything soon."

* * *

I step through the hallways, pulling curtain after curtain over my eyes. How can this be at all practical? Wouldn't it be so easy to just trip and-

Before I could finish my thoughts, I confirmed them, as I fell to the ground, bringing the curtain I had stepped on with me. I pulled myself up and brought my head to the scene before me, which took a few seconds to register that it was an Ohmes-raht boy standing in his room with his sword readied and a fearful look over his face. I tried to ignore the sword.

"Uhm, are you Ja'skar, by any chance?"

He was silent for a few seconds, trying to judge my intentions. I held my hands up to show peace, and to help him realize I don't actually have any weapons on me.

Not that I'd use any, if I were to get in a fight...

"Yes." He said at last, almost in a defeatist tone, as he sheathed his sword and looked to the floor.

"Sorry, this one just thought...Well, Ja'khan said that you could be..."

"An assassin?" I finished, as he had paused for too long. As I did, Ma'krin finally caught up to me, bringing perhaps the last five layers of curtains dragging along with him. Ja'skar's eyes grew wide again upon seeing him.

"Oh, don't worry, this is Ma-I mean, he's a friend, he's with me."

That didn't seem to help lessen any of his fear, as he now looks to me.

"And no, we're not assassins. We don't mean you any harm, we just want to help you."

Ja'skar now looks at us incredulously, doubting our words.

"Does Ja'skar know you?"

"Well, no. Not yet anyway."

Ja'skar sighs and sits down, looking at the floor again.

"This one already told Ja'khan he would have none of that! If this is just another of his sick attempts to-"

"No! No...No, that is not what I meant." I say, well before he could finish that sentence, as soon as I realized where it was heading.

"No, we just heard you were having some hard times, and I thought you just needed someone to talk to."

He looks at me once more, but this time not incredulously, or fearfully, but with genuine curiosity.

"Why?"

"Well, judging by how your brother spoke of you, I take it he isn't the nicest-"

"No, why do you care? If this one has learned anything from his father's rambling, it is that people never do anything without a reason, something for them to gain from it. What do you get out of 'helping' me, as you so claim to be here for?"

His words hurt, a bit, his accusative tone didn't help either, nor that he seems so sure that I'm only here because of some outside motive, rather than just to help. It hurts worse, because that's actually somewhat true, isn't it?

I sit down next to him and explain.

"Well, I don't know what your father said, but there are some in the world who truly do just want to help people, and not for any reward. Not many, I know, but there are some. I'll admit, though, you're right. I am here for a deeper reason, but I truly do want to help-"

My words are cut off by the sound of Ma'krin gulping down some snacks sitting in a bowl on a nearby table.

"Ma'krin, stop! That's not yours!" I shout at him as I stand up. Ma'krin moves his head to face me and, in the same motion, knocks the bowl to the ground, with all of the Moon Sugar snacks scattered.

I walk over and start picking them up to place them back in the bowl.

"I'm so sorry, he can get very hungry sometimes and just can't help himself whenever he sees-"

"Ah, do not worry. It is fine, He can eat them if he wishes. This one does not have much a taste for Moon Sugar himself, in truth."

With those words, Ma'krin snatches the bowl from my hand and resumes his meal. It's good to know I'm not the only Khajiit who doesn't have an obsession for Moon Sugar.

A chill runs down the back of my spine, however, as I suddenly realize- I had called Ma'krin by name. If Ja'skar has ever seen any of those wanted posters, he would be able to connect the dots and know who we are. He would never trust us, and that's if he wouldn't simply call the guards on us.

Is it too late? Have we already failed our mission?

Ja'skar doesn't seem at all surprised or fearful from the name, as I'm sure he would, if he had realized he was in the same room as two people wanted for attempted assassination against the Mane. Maybe he doesn't know, then.

"But anyway, this one thanks you for your kindness, but this one does not need any help. There is...nothing wrong."

It's promising to see he still has personal pride in himself, at least a little, but his tone betrayed his words.

"Okay then, I won't help. But we can talk, right?"

In other words, help.

"Hmm, that is fine, this one supposes."

I smile and sit down next to him again. There's a long pause for a few moments, as I realize he's waiting for me to say something. Now that I have the chance, I'm not actually sure what to say...how to bring up the topic of La'zanja, how do you just ask someone you hardly know a question that could hurt them?

* * *

Khinashi raises her head high and holds her quill and parchment by her side as she walks through the courtyard of the Jah'ishir's family villa. It is reminiscent to the Mane's palace in Torval, except without the religious obligations one would expect a spiritual leader to maintain. There are statues, fountains, beautiful stone walkways and then lush vine decorations hang from the outer lying rooftops below which the outer halls exist, where servants rush about to tend to their employers needs. There is even a bard out by the edge of the courtyard where young girls crowd, but none of them are La'zanja.

This one follows the central path, past a fountain and to giant doors, and doors within those doors, where two Cathay Jah'ishir guards are posted. The multiple door frames suggest the villa must be home to one or more Senche-raht, or at least was at some point. This one has only seen a few Senche-raht before. They are too large to live in Torval, for risk of collapsing the bridges that hold our city up, but they are still able to attend festivals and the like during the low water seasons which take place on the forest floor rather than the city proper. They are twice as tall as two Cathay-raht or Tojay-raht standing on their shoulders, the same length as one of them laying down, and the same width as one down with their arms stretched out, yet they are four dozen times as heavy. The largest of our kind indeed, there is an unnerving thought about how they could eat Khinashi in a single bite without even opening their mouth all of the way, if they were provoked. Khinashi has no intention of provoking them...

Khinashi shakes away her dreadful thoughts as she approaches the two door guards.

"State your name and purpose." One of the two Cathays speaks, in a way that suggests it is something he says often.

"This one is known as Ma'banja of Riverhold, and she is here on business to interview the famed heir of the Jah'ishir – La'zanja – of her life so far, to document it in a biography of people destined to be famous."

"You are quite young, and this one has never heard of you before. This one has also not heard of a scheduled interview-"

Khinashi cut him off before he could continue, this one suspected this could happen.

"Ah, but of course, Ma'banja is but an apprentice – working under the tutelage of Dra'idhavani of Riverhold, whose famous works are known across Elsweyr for their inspiring truths about the lives of our role models, such as the Mane Rid-Rawl'vah, King Ra-Marash of Elsweyr in Senchal, the Orcrest arena champions Do'raska and Do'han, and, before his betrayal and passing, the hero-mage and Moon Hallowed, Jo'azha of Torval..."

This one listed off some of the books she had read on those subjects with ease, Father was given a whole bunch of them for free after his interview, and it was quite believable that Dra'idhavani would have an apprentice. Khinashi knew so much of her works, if she were ever questioned on the subject she could answer them as if she were Dra'idhavani herself, but impersonating an elderly Cathay-raht would be quite difficult as a Suthay teenager.

"Yes yes, but unless you have an appointment-"

"This one admits, she did not schedule an appointment, her presence here is merely coincidental, but Ma'banja could not pass up this rare opportunity to meet with the famed La'zanja – and this one thinks La'zanja would be quite eager as well. Perhaps you should ask her opinion before sending this one away. Imagine her anger if she found out her guards made her miss such an opportunity for fame...Ma'banja would not want to be in your shoes in such a circumstance, if this one could wear shoes at all."

The guards looked to each other for an answer. One of them shrugged, and turned to Khinashi.

"Alright. This one will ask her."

And so he left, and when he did, Khinashi could not help but smile – so much so that she turned around and acted to be admiring the scenery, lest the remaining guard suspect something is amiss. Words are useful tools, even better when used in the proper way, you can talk your way through almost any situation, this one remembers Father telling her. If a lie or theft could save a life, then it is a worthy tactic.

Once the guard returns, Khinashi will make her way to La'zanja and attempt to befriend her and turn her favour for Ja'skar to be positive...This one is still not exactly sure how she will go about that, but then, if this part was so easy, then that will surely be as well.

"She said no."

The words surprised her. Khinashi turned around and saw that the guard had returned, with his hands behind his back.

"What?"

"La'zanja says she does not wish to be interviewed, not by you, or anyone. So leave."

"But, are you sure? It could be a great opportunity for her to earn more fame, and-"

"This one is sorry, he is merely following orders, but Miss La'zanja said that should you be persistent, that this one pour this on your head."

Khinashi is sure she misheard something the guard just said, but then he pulled out a jug from behind his back and stepped toward Khinashi.

"Wait, what are you-"

This one could not finish her sentence before she felt streams of cold wine pouring down her braided hair, and fur all over her face. Khinashi could but only stand there with her mouth hanging open out of shock at what La'zanja had requested. J'shabi was right about her...

"This one suggests you follow our advice and walk away, you do not want to know what Miss La'zanja had in mind if you stayed any longer than 30 seconds more. You are at 20."

Khinashi heeded the guard's sage advice and ran as fast as she could beyond the walls of the courtyard. It seems this will be more complicated than this one had anticipated...

* * *

As we stroll through the city, taking in all the sights and views, I once more lose track of time - and perhaps, forget a bit of our purpose here. I've always liked to travel. Ever since I left High Rock until I found Torval, I would never sleep in the same place twice. To be out again reminds me of why I wanted to leave, except now with those to share that experience, I'm also reminded of why I stayed so long in the first place.

A sudden vibration from below jolts me from my thoughts, and I jump down to sign to Ma'ketra.

"Do you think you could possibly purr ever so lighter? I was nearly getting motion sickness up there."

"That is not purring, that is this one's stomach growling. It has been awhile since we last ate."

"Ah yes, I sometimes forget you Senches need to eat several tons of food every day to stay afloat."

"No, that is just Ma'krin."

"Quite. Well, if you're hungry, we could always stop by the Inn."

"And pay them with what? How do you intend to even order food?"

"The same way I did in the days I was traveling outside of Elsweyr. What? You think they would arrest a 'housecat' for taking a fish here and there, maybe a fruit or two?"

"Except we are in Elsweyr, Khajiit walkers are not foolish, and you are not going to steal – not for this one's sake."

"Then I will for my own sake, and then I'll give you the food as a gift."

Ma'ketra sighs and shakes her head.

"Fine. Just hurry, then."

With her signs of obliging agreement out of the way, I ran off into a crowd of people, evading their stampeding feet and making most of them nearly trip trying to dodge me.

Within seconds I was at the open door to the Inn, it was more crowded now than before, but that made no difference. Invisibility spells are quite useful for such situations.

My target was a wheel barrel of freshly picked fruit nearby the counter which was being washed by the Innkeeper, along with a handful of dirty dishes. When her back was turned, I simply sunk my teeth into the apple and hopped down to the ground. The people here were too busy, too drunk, or simply too uncaring to notice an Alfiq walking off with an apple.

When I was beyond the door outside in a safe corner, I put the apple down and turned around to face the Inn one last time and laughed to myself how easy it's become.

My laughter was replaced with confusion, when I turned back to see the apple gone.

A hiss came from above, which drew my attention to a white-furred Alfiq perched on a nearby ledge with the apple beside her.

"Tsk tsk, hungry now are we? It is too bad you lost your apple, little thief."

"You know, I could just go steal another one just as easily. Besides, it's not even for me."

"Oh, could you? The Innkeeper seems quite alert right now. Go on, try it, this one dares you."

Even more than before, I was confused, until I looked back to the Inn to see what she meant. The wheel barrel had been pushed over, and the Innkeeper had a broom by her side looking for the supposed culprit- looking at the ground. How did she do that so quickly?

I looked back to her, and saw her licking her paws. I decided to take the moment and jump up to steal back the apple, but it seems she anticipated such an act and darted off with it before I could, leaving me scratching at the stone ledge.

"Now now, little thief, do not think yourself so sly. Do not worry, though, this one will give your stolen apple back. This one simply wants you to answer a question of hers."

"Well, I can't promise any answers, but go on then, what is it?"

"This one wants to know why a group of wanted criminals, for attempted assassination on the Mane from Torval, are here in the city, and why in particular, they are mingling with the heirs of the tribal leaders of Corinthe. You would not happen to know anything about that, would you?"

She must have seen the surprise on my face as she signed that. If she knows that much already, lying to her would be pointless.

"You must already know they're my friends, or you wouldn't be asking me."

"Good, you are smart. Now, this one could simply inform the Clan Mother, the guard captain, and the two tribal leaders of this little fact. Their disguises do not fool this one – but La'vani is willing to hear your side of the story first before making that decision, which is more than can be said for most anyone else in this city, so you might want to be honest. So tell La'vani: Why are you here?"

"Well, long story short: Mane Rid-Rawl'vah was killed by Ra-Zara'chi, who is now posing as Mane Rid-Rawl'vah and framed the ones who tried to protect him for the 'attempted' murder. My friends and I are the only ones who know the truth. Because of this, Ra-Zara'chi has sent assassins here to kill us, except the assassins don't know what we look like because of our disguises, so they intend to incite a riot between the two tribes come evening, during the Clan Mother's speech, in an effort to kill us indirectly, along with anyone else in the crossfire."

"That is a cute story, but it does not explain why the one known as Khinashi is trying to infiltrate my family's villa, nor J'shabi and Ma'krin with the Khajepako."

Once more I was surprised as to how much she knows already. If she knows their names and where they are...

"They seek to unite the heirs of the the two tribes in an effort to prevent the riot, while a third group is aiming to track down the assassins and stop their involvement."

"Ah yes, this one knows much about the Dagi...It is in fact the only reason this one did not already inform the authorities of your presence. It is good to see him again, even though he tries so hard not to be seen."

"So you believe me, then?"

"No, but then, this one does not necessarily think you are lying, either. We will just have to wait and see what becomes of this. Yet, this one is afraid your friends will soon find themselves with unwanted company regardless."

"What do you mean?"

"Their disguises will not protect them for much longer. The guards have recently received updated posters, more...accurate, than the previous, and have sent out guards to track them down. They know they are in the city, for they realize they are the group they let go earlier. They will be searching the whole city, from top to bottom, every house. Every corner. They will not be able to hide."

"So I'm guessing you have an idea to stop that?"

"No, not exactly, anyway. But it is clear you must find some way to distract the guards – make them prioritize the distraction over finding your friends. Only then will that buy them the time they need to do what they intend."

"Why do you want to help, anyway? You said you didn't believe me."

"This one said she does not know whether or not to believe you, and La'vani is not helping you, she is merely giving you the information you need to know to even attempt to succeed. Should you fail and get caught, you are on your own, and this one will not break you free or sign in your defence."

"Thanks, that makes me feel a lot safer."

"Hss, this one is risking enough to communicate with you at all. Now go, and take your apple, your Senche lady-friend is probably worried about you, Snorepaws."

With her last signs, she darted away and into the shadows, leaving the apple rolling down to me. How much has she been spying on us, if she even knew my nickname of a couple hours or less? How much more does she know?

I shook off the thoughts and carried the apple back to Ma'ketra, who was, as expected, looking very worried.

"There you are! This one was just about to run to the Inn and cause another scene looking for you. What took you so long?"

"Well, you're going to hate me for this, but I ran into that Alfiq again. However, you'll love me for this: I know a way we can help out the others."

* * *

"So...what is it like...You know, being you- the heir of the chieftain of the Khajepako tribe? Like, how do you feel about all of that?"

Ja'skar's eyes drift from side to side, and I regret my question, realizing it might not be something he likes to talk about.

"Ah, well...This one is not sure how to put it in words...Ja'skar loves his father, all his family, his tribe, but...Sometimes it feels most of this one's life was already determined before his birth."

Ja'skar paused, as if needing to think of what to say.

"Ja'skar has been told ever since he could understand language, that he was to eventually lead the tribe in his father's shadow, just as he himself had when his father before him passed on. It is the pressure to compare this one with him, to have so many rely on Ja'skar's decisions and leadership... This one is not sure if he wants that kind of responsibility. Yet what choice does Ja'skar have?"

The question surprised me at the end and I noticed he was looking to me for an answer.

"Well, what about your brother, Ja'khan? Maybe you could let him rule for awhile, until if and when you feel ready?"

"If this one could pass on the right to leadership to him, Ja'skar would in a heartbeat. He is much more prepared and capable to lead our tribe. He honors all of our traditions and encompasses our skills in hunting, sport, combat... Yet, that very respect he shows to the old ways means he would never accept it if this one were to offer it to him. Perhaps, in hindsight, that shows the fallacy of our tradition, if we ignore a problem because of its sacred origin."

For as many insults as Ja'khan said about him, Ja'skar only seemed to praise his brother. That doesn't feel right.

"So...you disagree with parts of your tribe's tradition, then?"

"Hmph. Yes and no. This one can see the value in strength and skill, for its benefits are obvious. Yet Ja'skar feels we neglect other areas that are just as important. This one feels we could learn a lot from the Jah'ishir, but Father would have Ja'skar's pelt for suggesting that. Father sees them only as swindlers and politicians, whom avoid problems by paying the right people off, but he ignores the whole – the concept of using their mind rather than just their strength to solve their problems. Ja'khan would say that is merely Ja'skar's weakness clouding his judgment, for this one has never excelled in those arts we do encourage. Ah, but for that this one hears no end of it from him – for the heir and future ruler of the tribe to not even be able to swing a blade properly only brings shame to our pride."

It's encouraging to hear such open-minded acceptance to the Jah'ishir, but just as much disheartening. If his father is so against the Jah'ishir, would Ja'skar and La'zanja even be able to convince them at all, and so quickly, or would that only make it worse?

"How do others in the tribe feel about that?"

"Well, most do not say much, out of respect – and perhaps a bit of fear from how Father would react. Ja'khan may ridicule this one for his sympathies and failings, but in truth, this one is glad for it. You might think that strange, but when you are destined to become leader, people often tend to hide their true feelings around you, so as to stay on your good side when the time comes that you could be the one deciding their fate. Ja'skar does not respect liars. Ja'khan's words may be harsh, but they are truthful, and are necessary if this one is to prepare himself to rule."

I realize by the time he finished that he was answering more to his failings in general rather than only of his thoughts of the Jah'ishir. I hesitate to press further, but it could be important to know...

"So, about the Jah'ishir...You say you think you could learn from them. Are you alone in this? Is there anyone else in the Khajepako who feel that way?"

"Now? No, not that this one knows of. Though if they did they would likely not share such thoughts. Yet this was not always the case. In-fact this recent feud with the Jah'ishir has only existed between us for the past few years. For most of Ja'skar's life our tribes were friends, allies almost."

"What happened to cause the rift between your tribes?"

"Well to answer that you would know what brought them together in the first place, for even that does not go back more than two decades. Father's brother – Ja'skar's uncle, Kherim, was once a great bard and artist, some of the murals you may see here in Corinthe were painted by him. Like Ja'skar he was not a warrior, unlike the expectation of most of those in the Khajepako, yet his talent earned him the respect of all our tribe all the same. He was a wanderer by heart, traveling across Elsweyr to sing his songs and share his art. Yet eventually he returned here after a time and with his mate, Khazi, who was equally praised for her skill in combat, and her deeds of heroism from which they came. They had a child named Jizad and raised him here, and for many years our tribes, and by extension the city as a whole, saw peace and prosperity. For you see, Khazi was the sister of the current Jah'ishir lord. It was their union that brought our tribes together."

"I notice you're speaking in the past tense."

"Yes. Sadly they are no longer with us, this one only hopes Ma'jizad has not succumbed to a similar fate. The events surrounding the death of Khazi were what brought our tribes apart. A death with no answer, or perhaps, far too many."

"What do you mean?"

"Only that the cause of her death is as of yet still unknown. It appeared to be an accident, and to the general public and their own young child, this was the only story. To the tribes who knew them better, more possible answers presented themselves. Unsettling truths about Khazi were revealed, some which were denied, and then the conspiracies began. Fingers were pointed at many who would have had a motive behind her murder. Whether they truly believed them capable of such an act or if it was just their emotions speaking, the damage was done. The lack of trust between our tribes gave way and all the Clan Mother and town guards could do was all but prevent an all-out war. Soon after, Kherim and his son left Corinthe to get away from it all, and never returned. Quite recently, news was brought to us of Kherim's passing. This one only hopes they have found each other again in the sands beyond."

Ja'skar turns away and sits in silence. It's always sad to hear stories like this, of loss, death and murder. Moreso because they always remind me of my own tale.

Yet it's promising, at the least, to know that the union of two Khajiit from different tribes could bring them together, if it has in the past.

I look around the room and take notice of the fact that Ma'krin has by now fallen asleep. I'm starting to doubt Khinashi's reasoning that Ma'krin would be of much help for this task. How long has it been since we came here? How much time do we have left? I can't avoid the topic forever, but perhaps now would be the best time to move away from the talk of murder.

"You know, maybe it's possible you could unite the tribes again. Help fix what was lost."

"What...do you mean?" Ja'skar asks, seeming confused, but interested.

"Well, I've overheard you and one of the children of the Jah'ishir tribe get along pretty well."

Ja'skar's interest was replaced with disappointment.

"Ah, yes. Ja'skar guesses that was not much of a secret. You are right, we did. The one you speak of is La'zanja, heir to her tribe much as Ja'skar is for his, but you are wrong...Ja'skar is not Kherim, La'zanja is not Khazi. Both were well-respected, their union was not rejected only because of their personal influence and fame, they were also older. The tribes had no choice but to accept it, any opposition was defeated- and there was opposition."

"But it turned out to be for the better, right? You said it brought peace and prosperity."

"Yes. It did, and they would remember that. Still, our parents would never allow it, and besides- it would never work between this one and La'zanja. At one time Ja'skar thought differently, but it is clear now. We are too different."

"Weren't you already planning to be married at one point?"

"Sort of, yes. Our parents did not allow it then, and it only got as far as it had because they did not know. We thought to leave them out of the decision entirely, bribing others to keep quiet, under the guise that it was merely to surprise them. We both knew they would have to know in the end, during the ceremony. We both knew what to expect- that they would be furious, perhaps even denounce us as their children, maybe even banish us, and we were okay with this. Yet...what happened, was different. Something we did not expect."

"What happened?"

"Instead, Father challenged this one to a duel, with Ja'khan his surrogate champion. He said if Ja'skar won, he would accept defeat and allow our union to proceed. The Jah'ishir lord agreed to this. We would both retain our titles, and our families would accept us. If Ja'skar lost, then quite simply, we would not be allowed to proceed with the ceremony. If we refused entirely to accept their challenge, and proceed regardless, we would be denounced and banished from Corinthe."

"What? They could really just banish you for that, how?"

"Well, at the time, the Ja-Kha'jay was under the Khajepako phase of ruler ship, so yes, they could do that."

"So what did you do?"

"La'zanja wanted Ja'skar to refuse them entirely. To proceed regardless, that we could leave and live our life somewhere else. That is what we expected from the start, anyway, and we were both okay with that. Ja'skar, however, was torn. While he already made peace with the idea of leaving, having the chance to both stay and be with La'zanja, perhaps...made this one greedy, which Father must have known – hence why he challenged Ja'skar in the first place. La'zanja had always encouraged Ja'skar to improve his combat skills that he so neglected, and so this felt like a chance to prove it all, to earn everything. La'zanja felt this one was foolish and stupid to agree to their terms."

"So you accepted the challenge?"

"Yes, and Ja'skar was defeated in no more than 6 seconds."

I squinted at the thought, such an unhappy ending to a story. I realized Ja'skar didn't move an inch, he just said it matter-of-factly.

"So...I take it you're not too good with combat?"

Ja'skar laughed.

"Father, Ja'khan and many others of our tribe – all great warriors, have trained this one in the ways of the blade, of the claw, of the bow. On foot, on the back of Senche, sometimes even in the air-

"How would you fight in the-"

"Ja'skar knows the techniques, this one is the bane of all target dummies, to be sure...But when it comes to fighting another living being...It is as if this one has never lifted a blade in his life."

"That's strange. Why do you think that is?"

"This one does not know for sure, but if he were to guess, it could be that Ja'skar is afraid of hurting anyone."

"But in training-"

"Yes, this one knows what you will say. Training is not real combat, there is no threat of death, but it goes even further than that. Ja'skar has been in real fights with brigands before, who would have had no problem of cutting Ja'skar down and ending his life. Even then, Ja'skar could not bring himself to hurt them – it is only because of Ja'khan and others with him that he survived at all."

"Well, I don't like killing anyone either, and I avoid it when I can, but I don't know about this."

"Hmph. La'zanja would tell you that this one is 'too nice', that he lacks the anger that is needed in combat, the anger that allows one the ability to cause others harm, even if only in self-defence. She could be right, this one is not sure he can recall a time when he was 'angry', at least, by the definition others seem to give it."

I think over all of what he's said so far before responding. I truly have not a clue how to bring La'zanja and Ja'skar together, but it seems like the core problem at the heart of the matter with Ja'skar is that he can't fight, or maybe he can, but he just can't bring himself to? Maybe I could teach him, but to what end would that achieve?

"Well, I could try and teach you about fighting-you know, if you want, anyway. Maybe it could just be that the others were trying to teach you in the wrong way? If Ja'khan is anything to go by, I'd guess they take more of a hardline approach. It could just be they never taught you the basics, and only the advanced parts."

"Hmm, Ja'skar supposes. It could not hurt."

"Maybe it could even allow you to impress La'zanja? You never know."

"Hah. No. At this point, even if Ja'skar were the greatest swordsman in Corinthe, that would not help. She no longer has interest in marriage or relationships, not with Ja'skar, not with anyone, and Ja'skar will respect that decision."

Well, for the sake of everyone in Corinthe, I hope Khinashi can change La'zanja's mind about that.

* * *

Khinashi pokes her head out of the bushes one last time to make sure no one is watching. Why would anyone be watching here, anyway? It is barely a part of town anymore. The shrubs go from here to the edge of the plateau, with the sparse few trees – if you could call them that – throughout. Perhaps it is merely out of paranoia that something will go wrong. This one was so sure that plan would have worked...Any noble or 'high-breed' from Pelletine that Khinashi has come across has always seemed addicted to the notion of fame and fortune – in whichever form they prefer. Why would La'zanja be any different? She is just as snobby, if not more, than those she has met...That seems to be an almost universal trait.

No matter, this plan is different. It is clear no amount of fancy words will get her past the guards, so that only leaves sneaking in some other way as the remaining option.

But then what? How will La'zanja react to a trespasser in her family's villa?

Well, this one will just have to improvise when and if she makes it in at all.

Khinashi dashes out from the shrubs and quickly digs her claws into the cracks of the stone blocks the large wall about their villa is made of. With some pain from straining her claws, she slowly makes her way up and over the wall, and then lets herself fall into a bush on the other side.

This one notices a servant perk their ears up at the sound, and Khinashi internally regrets she could not have foretold there was anyone on the other side before she made her climb.

Luckily, it appears the servant does not have the nerve to investigate the source, clinging to the hope that it was merely a large rodent or some such.

But it is not over yet, this one is merely in the backyard garden. A quick scan reveals other servants tending to the various plants, but far enough away that they should be of no concern to Khinashi.

This one sneaks on all fours, as quietly as she can, through the bushes, wincing as the branches and twigs of the bushes snap at her eyes and snout. Eventually she finds the end, nearby the walls of the villa itself. Her destination. The decorative vines that don the walls will make her very entrance possible. A large, open window sits in the shadow of the garden, away from prying eyes that would seek to alarm the residence.

Khinashi rolls out from the bushes and grabs onto the vines, making her way to the window, taking pains to glance around in case anyone did decide to suddenly walk this way. It is safe, for now.

Voices come into hearing distance as this one approaches ever so closely to the window beyond. This one curses her luck that she had to choose one to a room that was occupied.

"And this one does not care what Father wants!" The voice shouts, followed by the slamming of a door and the yowl of the unfortunate Khajiit servant who had their snout smashed by it. No doubt this must be La'zanja's room, then. Great...

Khinashi nearly lost her grip from the sudden force that came from the La'zanja slamming the door. In fact, this one wonders if it might have come from something else instead, but what?

The silence thereafter was broken by a solemn sound of sadness. This one can hear La'zanja sobbing, and for a moment, Khinashi almost felt sorry to have thought so rudely of her. Almost.

"Why is it this one who has to prepare for leadership, Zan'ir? It should be you. You are years older than La'zanja, and much wiser. You would lead us well in the wake of our Father, when the time comes to pass it on."

Hmm, La'zanja must speak of succession to the leadership of her tribe. This one remembers Dagi mentioning that La'zanja was the heir of the Jah'ishir. Yet she speaks to someone of the same Father, whom is older? Strange, it is usually the eldest that is heir.

"This one does not doubt you resent it, Zan'ir. You deserve it more than this one. La'zanja does not even want this, and yet they force it upon her, this title..."

It is unusual to hear that an heir would resent their opportunity to take a throne. Usually it is a goal oft-desired by most. Yet, who is it she speaks to, this Zan'ir?

"And that is your problem, Zan'ir, you are too kind for your own good. That is your weakness, and it is being exploited against you. It is frustrating, really- you and others. You could force them to listen to you if you stood up to them, but you let them walk all over you...When it could be the other way around, in more ways than one."

More knocking is heard at the door.

"What is it now?" La'zanja says with noticeable annoyance.

"Miss La'zanja? It is nearing dinner time, and your father requests you at least attend for the appetizers-and he said, this time if you refuse, he will send some guards to-Ow!"

The door, seemingly, can be opened both ways, as this new servant unfortunately found out.

"Very well." La'zanja says, stomping out and down the hallway. This one hopes Zan'ir followed suit, but Khinashi cannot be so sure. It is Khinashi's only chance to use this window for entry, and her claws are becoming tired and every moment is another risk that someone could spot her, so she tugs her way closer and closer...

Until suddenly, a giant head peeks its neck out of the equally large window, and Khinashi's heart skips a beat from shock as she realizes it belongs to a Senche-raht: Zan'ir.

Zan'ir, who apparently has not noticed this one clinging to the walls, yet, for his head is too far out to see from his peripheral vision.

All thoughts of using that window have been forgotten, and now Khinashi's only goal was to return to the safety of the ground, her claws are now shaking with fear. So much, that they eventually just give way, and Khinashi finds herself falling the rest of the way to the ground, luckily the bush she had hidden in earlier now broke her fall.

But the noise alerted the mighty Senche-raht above, whose eyes now stared viciously down to Khinashi. It would be no question in his mind if this one is supposed to be here. The head quickly returned inside the window, and Khinashi heard the same, loud thundering noise as the Senche-raht no-doubt made its way across the villa.

Khinashi wasted no time in getting up and running away, now was not the time for stealth. But where could she go? She cannot just run past the servants in the gardens, they would alarm the guards, and then the security would be far too tight to make any further attempt. No, this one will have to run to the front of the villa, and simply try her best to pretend she was looking for the bard playing music or some such to the guards, long enough to get out of the courtyard.

Despite Khinashi's fur making her look twice as large, she manages to somehow not attract the attention of the guard, and soon makes her way past the fountain. And then she hears the stomping return. She hears the large doors open from far behind her, as Zan'ir walks out of the villa. Khinashi does not dare turn around, lest she faint out of fear, but the sound of his footsteps approaching is signal enough to how close he is.

When it gets loud enough, and Khinashi makes it out of the courtyard proper, she breaks out into a full sprint.

But then so does Zan'ir, and a two-legged Khajiit trying to outrun four-walker can only end one way.

Khinashi feels her feet being lifted off of the ground by the maw of the Senche-raht, as she dangles at his mercy at a height three times her own. The fact this one has yet to faint is a miracle at all, let alone brave the words to speak.

"This-this one...sorry, did not mean...Please let this one down." The words broke out like startled sobs, but the Senche-raht did not abide her request. Merely turned around and slowly made their way back to the villa.

Zan'ir would bring this one to the guards, Khinashi's identity would be discovered, and she would be thrown in jail. There would be no other way about this. No amount of words could talk her out now, no amount of skill or strength could break her free. It would take a miracle to save her now, and only Father was ever capable of such magic.

But then, just like that, the answer was in her thoughts. Magic. Is there a spell that could save her now? Destruction would only sooner end her life, and this one could see no use for Alteration...But Illusion?

Senche-raht are mighty and large, but they are still Khajiit, and their minds are as simple as the average mortal when it comes to manipulating them.

All of Father's training brought itself to the front of Khinashi's mind, a calm spell may just very well save her life, if Zan'ir is not a fighter. La'zanja mentioned him as kind, so perhaps, there may just be a chance...

Khinashi closed her eyes and focused all of her magical power into the palm of her hand, and released it toward Zan'ir's face.

For a few moments, Zan'ir stopped, and his eyes glowed strangely, but then Khinashi noticed herself falling to the ground, and had to twist herself to land correctly.

Zan'ir no longer seemed aggressive, he seemed, at the very least, calm.

But the spell would not last forever, and so Khinashi turned to look for which way would be best to run and hide.

And a thought occurred to her, as she looked toward Zan'ir and then the villa.

Under a calm spell, they would not do anything to harm someone unless provoked. They do not lose all free will, they can still make their own decisions to an extent, but they see no one as an enemy, and thus Zan'ir has no reason to bring any harm to Khinashi in any form.

Zan'ir will return to the villa in a few moments, he will simply pass by the guards without question. Khinashi could use this to her advantage.

She could not climb on top of Zan'ir, for even there, the guards- someone, would notice her.

So what if Khinashi were to hide inside?

This one approached the Senche-raht, the largest of the Khajiit. The one who could eat Khinashi whole without even fully opening their jaw, if he were ever provoked. Khinashi pulled open his jaw and thought for a moment- on the list of crazy ideas she has ever come up with, where would this fall? This one has done many crazy things, insane perhaps, in her short time on Nirni... but 'to put one's head in the Senche-raht's mouth' always felt like it would be just a saying.


	11. Chapter 10: A Tale of Two Kitties (P3)

**Chapter 10: A Tale of Two Kitties (Part 3)**

This one can still not get over how that worked! We must have passed by several guards and Jah'ishir tribe members...This was perhaps truly the only way Khinashi could have ever managed to sneak in past all of them. Hiding inside a Senche-raht's mouth, whether madness or genius, it worked.

Zan'ir will have gone back his normal feelings, thoughts and emotions by now, but that is not of any immediate worry. He did not forget our previous encounter, but he will not remember it unless something reminds him. He will be too busy eating at dinner now anyway, along with the rest of the family, except La'zanja.

It is perhaps a stroke of luck that La'zanja prefers to eat alone, it gives Khinashi a perfect chance to go and speak to her, but, if what this one has already witnessed several times already is any indication, then she does not like to be disturbed. If this one does not go about this right, she would simply dismiss this one, or some other prank which would end in bodily harm, but in the process ruining Khinashi's only remaining chance at convincing her.

The only problem now is that the room Khinashi chose to hide in was a closet containing spare clothes for the family cooks.

This one will just have to work with it.

Khinashi pulls up the floppy, impractical white hat cooks always seem to wear and walks through the swinging door to the pantry, and sees a multitude of other servants and an angry looking Breton cook cleaning off his face.

"Are you the new cook? They replaced me that quickly?" The Breton nearly shouts, his cheeks brimming with anger.

This one hung her mouth open, thinking of how to respond.

"Well if you aren't, you are now. If they haven't already fired me, I quit! That child is unreasonable!I've been cooking masterpieces for 40 years! 40! I've served Nobles, Kings, Counts all over Tamriel, from High Rock to Black Marsh, and even Alinor, and she dismisses my artwork as some beggar's meal? She threw it in my face!"

Khinashi still stood there, afraid of how to respond, lest he go completely mad.

The Breton swung his arms up, clearly considering whether or not to say something further about his patron. Eventually he shook his head and walked toward the door.

"Well, I'd wish you luck, but you'll need more than that if you're going to cook for her. I can see now why this family has gone through several chefs, and I've only been here a week! Not anymore. No. Do me a favour and throw a bowl of hot stew in her face, see how she likes it. She's expecting a 'proper' meal in a few minutes. Pbbth."

The Breton shakes his head some more and walks out of the door. This one looks over to the servants about the room, but upon eye contact they all turn away, clearly wishing to not be involved.

Well, that was surprisingly simple. Not one of them questioned her presence here and merely assumed her to be a new cook.

But if not even a chef who has cooked for over 40 years professionally could please her high-class tastes...how on Nirni is this one, whom has only cooked food for her family in Torval only occasionally going to do any better? If she is expecting food, it would be a simple matter to use that as a chance to speak to her, but if she does not like it, it will likely end up in this one's face, and she would never listen to anything Khinashi has to say. Even if she does like it, she probably still would not listen, yet there is no other option Khinashi can think of to try.

Khinashi sighs as she rests her hand on a table with a bunch of ingredients and special recipes. She hardly recognizes most of them, and the recipes do not seem very straight-forward either, requiring knowledge of cooking far beyond that of her skill to even begin to follow. This one doubts asking anyone here would be a good idea – if she cannot even follow a simple recipe they may see through her ruse and report her to the family.

This one knocks her head on the table in frustration, and an egg threatens to roll off. Khinashi catches it before it hits the ground and suddenly thinks to herself. It has been awhile since she has eaten at all, perhaps she could make some simple food for herself in the meantime. It could give her inspiration, and if this one is doomed to fail anyway, it would not hurt to have a good meal before inevitably being thrown into jail. Khinashi's time at the Torval jail taught this one they do not feed criminals well.

* * *

"That is an awful, terrible idea Snorepaws, can you not think of something less...Fiery?"

"What? Nothing says 'distraction' like a big fire."

"Nothing says 'dangerous' like one either."

"I can think of a few things more dangerous distractions actually, but we don't have access to hallucinogenic drugs and a water supply big enough to sustain it. Unfortunate really, that was my first idea. It worked quite well back in Wayrest."

"Alright, fine. This one supposes it could be worse, it will not cause too much destruction if they put it out quickly, right?"

"Huh? Oh...right, sure I guess."

Ma'ketra sighs and looks around.

"So where do you intend to create this 'distraction' hmm? Or have you not decided yet?"

"Oh, so many places to choose from...but I'm sure you'd prefer it not be someone's residence, so yes, I remember seeing an old warehouse in the northwest part of town as we were sight-seeing. It looks abandoned, and it's big enough to get everyone's attention."

"Are you sure it is abandoned and not just a storehouse for extremely important supplies for the city?"

"Same thing, and if it is, that would grab their attention even more! You said they'd put the fire out quickly anyway..."

"That was actually a question, but okay."

"There it is, just up ahead."

I look up as we approach the old warehouse ahead of us, and cast a detect life spell to make sure it's vacant of inhabitants- and it is, save for the few rodents that you would expect in any worn-down building. They say that animals can detect when a fire is about to start and get out in time. That would be a useful ability to have, but I think I prefer the sapience and magical prowess that comes from being an Alfiq Khajiit rather than the ordinary housecat I so often get mistaken for outside of Elsweyr.

Ma'ketra nudges her her head against the door, but is met with resistance.

"It is locked." Ma'ketra explains, although she didn't need to, it was quite obvious by the chains and locks all over.

"Do you think you could smash a hole through the door?"

Ma'ketra snorts a laugh.

"Ma'krin probably could easily, with his thick skull. This one might be able to, but it would likely daze her, and be so loud as to announce our presence to the guards. Unless you think you could move this one away to safety after starting the fire, it is perhaps not a good idea."

"I think I'd have better luck moving a mountain, although maybe that's a bit redundant."

"What? Is the Snorepaws so weak?"

"I'll have you know I can lift three times my weight without magic! That's more than any Cathay-raht can say with honesty."

"Ma'ketra is afraid it does not work like that."

Jokes aside, I did a quick scan around the warehouse for any other possible entrances. No other doors, only high windows, with no means of access. Far, far too high to jump, and the walls aren't fit for an Alfiq to climb, but a Dagi maybe.

"I somehow doubt Dagi would want to help us with burning down a warehouse in his hometown. I'm out of ideas. The windows are the only other entrance, but there's no way for me to reach one."

"Perhaps you could politely ask a walker to throw you up there and hope they don't miss, hmm?"

Ma'ketra's suggestion was obviously jocular, but the concept itself could actually work. No one would help us, but if I could...

"Snorepaws, you know this one was just kidding, right?" Ma'ketra signs, perhaps after noticing me being lost in thought. I look around for anything that could help us achieve such a stunt, and everything falls into place.

"No, that could work. Not thrown- but launched, like a catapult-"

"Ma'ketra does not think there are any catapults here-"

"We could use a long plank from that stack over there, set it up on that large rock...Then you could use your burly self to launch me at the window. It could work!"

"Surely you are not serious? Do you realize how dangerous-"

Ma'ketra stops and thinks for a moment, and shakes her head, realizing that was an obvious question.

"One of these days Snorepaws your schemes will see to the end of one or both of us."

"But not today."

"We shall see."

Ma'ketra walks over and picks up the plank with her teeth, dragging it to the nearby rock that will be used for our stunt. I perch myself onto one end of the plank as she sets it down, preparing myself for launch. Ma'ketra gives me a dumb look.

"Do you not at least think it would be a good idea to test it first, and make sure it works, before sending you off to your doom?"

"If we do, someone might notice what we're up to if we miss and hit it with a rock. If we're quick they won't know what hit them."

"This one is not sure if you are talking about the townspeople or the warehouse, or yourself."

"I trust your aim."

"You may, but Ma'ketra is not quite as confident...But you will not back down, so..."

I retract my claws and roll my shoulders, waiting for Ma'ketra to finish her sentence. Then suddenly I'm launched into the air without notice and only just then have doubts as to if that was a good idea.

I wildly flay my limbs as I shoot forth toward my destination. Yet, as I met level with it, I kept rising, and rising until nearly reaching the height of the roof, and slamming into the wall.

I stabbed my claws into the side of the building to stick, and took a glance below. The window was a few feet beneath me, but many more below that was the ground, an assured death sentence if I ever saw one.

Ma'ketra came up close to the side, perhaps to try and catch me if I fall, not that it would do any good at that point.

My claws started losing their grip, and I found myself sliding down along the warehouse. When I reached the top of the window frame I retracted my back feet claws and swung myself in to the warehouse. Luckily I happened to land on the edge of a tall wooden scaffolding, but my weight threw its balance off and I tumbled to the ground, the structure with me. The fall didn't hurt, but the adrenaline from the stunt took some time to wear down, and I looked like a puffball for a few seconds.

Ma'ketra growled and scratched at the front door. I mewed back, indicating that I survived. It's a shame we can't actually speak, or I would have made a comment on her terrible aim.

Yet, the sound from the scaffolding falling may have been heard, so I waste no time in setting the place ablaze. I walk along a section with nearby wood and hay spread throughout the floor. Perhaps it could have been a barn once. Strange. My front feet glow red hot as the flame spreads from my spell beneath me, and no sooner does a fire begin to erupt. I repeat the process on several other surfaces until it's quite certain that it will spread throughout the entirety.

I sniff the air and smell the delightful scent of fire and decide my work is done. Then I glance back up to my escape route and realize, with the scaffolding having fallen over, there is no longer any means of reaching it.

I quickly scan the other walls of the warehouse for any other windows I could escape from, but by now, all were either out of reach to begin with or no longer accessible due to the walls of flame. I consider frost spells, but remember I have no real means of using them like Khinashi can.

I look to the front door, but remember it was locked from the other side with chains. Not a simple mechanism, not one I could use anyway.

And then the panic sets in.

Ma'ketra roars again, and I mew back, regretting more than ever now that I can't use illusion spells to speak yet.

I try it again anyway, but as per usual, all that comes out is a mix of a meow, a squeal, and a roar, with no structure for words to be spoken at all.

Ma'ketra roars back, louder this time. She'll understand eventually, but by then it may be too late. I look back to see the spread of the flames, and if it looked unlikely to be able to escape before, it was impossible now. The guards would soon smell the fire and would be here, but long after I would be roasted, not to mention they would likely – correctly - assume me as the arsonist anyway. At best I'd be in jail then, at worst they could just kill me then and there. If Ma'ketra leaves me behind she may be able to save herself from the guards, but would she do that?

I scratch at the door and try one more time to help her realize I'm trapped.

A few moments pass with no response, perhaps she did decide to run and save herself.

I curl up as the flames approach. I don't blame her for running, there would be no use in getting us both killed if that could be avoided, and she always was the fearful, over-cautious one. Maybe I should have taken some of her advice. I try to think on what Ma'ketra was trying to tell me in my last few, unbearably hot, moments. Not these past few hours, not today, but since we met.

At least, until a loud crash rudely tears interrupts my thoughts and a hole appears in the door. At first I assume the guards are here, but instead I see Ma'ketra's large head sticking out of the hole. I glance to the fire, seeing it mere feet away now and jump through the hole in the door, looking for a place to hide. In the distance I see a group of guards running toward us, not long before they get here. I start off in a direction away, looking back to make sure Ma'ketra is behind me, but realize she was serious about how smashing the door would daze her. She doesn't move.

I glance to Ma'ketra, to the guards, and to my escape route, and consider my options.

But then there was only ever really one.

I jump back through the hole and try nudging her uselessly with my head. Just in case it worked. With that confirmed I focus my mind on the task of moving the large Senche before me with alteration. I've only just learned to control it not more than a week ago, but I've always been able to use the spell for years, if only accidentally. The heaviest thing I'd lifted since are buckets of water or things of similar weight, and even that puts a strain on me and wears me out, but I can't just leave her here.

My head aches from the stress of focusing so hard and my body goes numb, but slowly, and ever surely, Ma'ketra slides across the ground. At first just enough to be out of the warehouse, then out of distance from the encroaching flames, but no more than that can my mind handle, and I myself collapse from exhaustion. My final image before falling unconscious is a group of understandably angry guards approaching us, with swords drawn.

* * *

Khinashi approaches with a meek smile plastered on her face, while inside every inch of her body is frozen with dread. La'zanja has not yet taken notice of her, or if she has, has not yet felt the need to indicate this. Khinashi is awaiting the signal that confirms her failure- there truly is no other conclusion, and that truth helps her prepare for the inevitable, and yet it does not erase her fear.

La'zanja looks up for a moment, and then returns to licking her paws and arms to clean her fur. What La'zanja expects is clearly too much, she did not even give this one enough time to even try making a suitable meal, at least she does not seem all too surprised of there being a different cook serving her now.

All this one has for her is the few treats Khinashi had made for herself to eat, something to pass the time, to practice, perhaps inspire her cooking arts, and feed her own hunger. Just as she was about to eat them she got the call to bring the new meal to La'zanja. Could even a master chef make something good in that short amount of time?

The smile is becoming straining to hold, and now this one no longer cares to uphold it. Smile or not she will be sent away, and so Khinashi stands, looking bored at the Suthay noble before her. It is true, La'zanja does look much like this one in many ways. In the dark, we may even be identical, save for height and of course this one's missing tooth. Looking at La'zanja is like looking at a slightly older version of herself, one who chose a different path in life, born to different parents. Is this truly what Khinashi could have been like? The thought sends shivers down her spine.

"What is this?" La'zanja says at last, with an unmistakable tone of anger. Here it comes. She has finished her grooming and decided to take notice of Khinashi's existence. This one was beginning to wonder if she would actually wait to yell at her until after actually tasting it.

Khinashi opened her mouth, at first she was about to apologize, but then stopped. This one is in no way sorry, and if whatever she says here matters not, and the conclusion will be the same anyway, then Khinashi will make the most of it and speak her true feelings. This one is done with trying to appease people whom cannot be appeased.

"They are sweetrolls, La'zanja. More importantly it is your dinner, whether you like it or not." This one says with gleaming eyes. La'zanja looks surprised at her words for a moment, but then returns the dark stare.

"And what if La'zanja does not like it?"

"Then you will starve for the night unless you decide to cook for yourself, but cooking is beneath you, no? Of course it is."

La'zanja gives no response aside from the same dark stare we share. She snatches the plate of snacks from Khinashi's hands and examines it, lifting up one of the sweetrolls and inspecting it.

And then she threw it.

This one had suspected she would and merely lifted her hand in time to catch it before it hit her. In the few moments La'zanja was surprised, Khinashi shoved the sugary, bread-treat all across her face.

With that finished, this one took a step back, watching as the noble Suthay came to terms with what had happened, standing there blinking in shock, with her mouth hanging open.

"What...You...This one could have you fired for that! Sent to jail for what you have done!" La'zanja says with her voice breaking from confusion.

"Yes." Khinashi merely says.

"Why?"

"Because this one is not afraid of you, La'zanja. Send this one to jail, do it, you coward. You know you were just planning how to ruin this one's day when she came in, how to insult her and make her regret coming here, admit it."

"Yes." La'zanja replies, in a tone that claimed agreement and sudden understanding. That is strange, Khinashi expected her to insult her, deny it or call the guards.

"Well...This one will not wait for you to send her away or call the guards, because in truth this one does not care what you have to say, so she will take her own leave."

This one turns around and walks toward the door.

"Wait!"

Khinashi does not stop.

"La'zanja is sorry, you are right. Please, stay for a moment."

This one is not sure her ears heard correctly, but, to entertain the thought that she truly did just hear the words "La'zanja is sorry" coming from the noble's mouth, Khinashi stopped and turned around. It looked like the La'zanja she had just seen moments ago was replaced with someone else, or maybe the sweetroll smeared over her face made her look less condescending.

"What?" This one asks, impatiently.

"La'zanja apologizes for her earlier behavior. This one merely thought you were like the other chefs and servants La'zanja's parents send her way. They wear masks over their faces- pretending to be happy, pretending to respect La'zanja, and are too afraid to speak the truth of their thoughts. This one hates liars."

"And this one hates those who assume things of those they do not yet know."

"True. It is just, no one has ever said anything like that to La'zanja before. You are brave, for this one truly could have sent you to the guards and to jail."

"So you are not going to, then?"

"No. La'zanja would like to know more of the one who is not afraid to speak their mind. Let us talk."

* * *

Jahirr looks at this one inquisitively as Dagi descends the wall, asking if he succeeded. Dagi pulls out an old, woven doll depicting a Cathay girl with the name "Ma'isha" on holds it near him. Jahirr sniffs it for a few moments, taking in the scent that surrounds it, and begins his search as we leave the alleyways.

A warehouse caught fire not long ago, and so most of the town members and guards are away, which gives us a window of opportunity to do this. Even Clan Mother Kishari was away to investigate, and so it was a simple matter to slip in and find an item that belonged to her apprentice and adopted daughter Ma'isha. This one is not sure if that is who the hostage is, but Dagi has not seen her at all since we have arrived in Corinthe, and if they were as close as he remembers, then it would make most sense. It is our only lead, regardless, and so we must take it.

But Dagi wonders if his first instincts are to be relied upon anymore. Jahirr clearly was not in agreement to how he handled the assassins earlier in the alleyways. Dagi could have killed them then, without arousing alarm – no one would have been able to see it. He had a vantage point, a simple matter to fire a few arrows...But this one felt if we followed them, they could lead us to the hostage. It was a gamble, and one that Dagi lost.

When they slipped away into one of the skooma dens, killing them was no longer an option. Too many witnesses, and they would not understand the circumstances. The hostage was not there, and Dagi was only just able to procure items from their persons to be able to track them later.

It is clear they intend to incite the riot by masquerading as members of both tribes, perhaps then publicly killing an opposing tribe member before slipping away, but there also appears to be a third, unknown step...What could that be? Dagi has overheard townsfolk talk of the reforming of the Renrija Krin and their renewed goals of liberating Leyawiin from the Empire. According to information Smallpaws had gathered, the ones helping Dazlah are a part of this organization. They seem to be making use of the absence of the moons to promote their goals, but also to incite unrest between the townsfolk and authority. Is this merely an extension of their aid to Dazlah in killing us, or is it a part of something deeper?

Whatever the case, it is out of our ability to convince the townsfolk of the Renrija Krin's involvement in trying to start a riot, so Dagi can only focus on removing the assassins from the equation and hope the damage they have already done will be tempered enough by the other's efforts to prevent the riot.

This one hopes they have had more success than Dagi has so far, or it is not looking good for Corinthe... It is getting late in the afternoon now, soon evening will come, and with that the Clan Mother's announcement, and the moment in which we discover if we succeed or fail.

Dagi looks up to see where Jahirr has been leading us, and takes note that we are leaving the plateau of Corinthe.

"Jahirr, you are sure you smell Ma'isha this far away?"

Jahirr nods without turning his head around and continues walking toward his destination. Many camps are set up nearby. This one feels a bit uneasy about walking out in the open, people will be returning to their camps soon from the city, they could recognize us. Would they really have hid the hostage this far away?

Eventually it becomes clear where Jahirr detects the scent. The only building for some distance, an old abandoned farmhouse much like the one that caught fire in the city. Dagi remembers they used to belong to an old Imperial farmer whom sought to ply his trade in lands that were not accustomed to the animals he raised. He could undercut the prices of imports, and had a monopoly of that market. Yet he eventually discovered why exactly those animals are so rare to find here in Elsweyr...Now only the farmhouses remain, and it appears it is where Ma'isha is being held.

This one leaps off of Jahirr's back and approaches the door. If Dagi were not certain before that this is where the hostage is, it is clear now. The chains and locks that were around the handles have been broken, hanging there uselessly. Yet the door is still locked – it must be boarded from the inside.

Dagi scans around for other entrances and sees some open windows, far too high to jump, but not to climb for him. It is strange why climbing anywhere other than the Tenmar forest has no effect on Dagi's mind. Obviously it is because of Mother's fate, but yet, that fate does not only happen among Tenmar trees.

"Wait here a moment, Jahirr. Dagi will open it from the other side."

Jahirr looks as if he is trying to tell this one something, but Dagi cannot understand his sign language. He grunts and walks by the door in defeat. Hopefully it was not too important.

Dagi climbs up the wall in seconds and crawls inside. This one had not seen the interior of this place before, it is strange architecture, and foreboding in some ways, were the animals restrained to such small areas?

As this one looks further, he sighs of relief as he looks to the ground floor. Ma'isha is tied to a support beam at the back, no doubt she notices him by now, but would she recognize Dagi? This one is not sure what he would prefer.

Dagi leaps down from the top level to the ground and unlocks the door. The light from outside takes some time for Dagi's eyes to adjust. Without further hesitation he runs over to Ma'isha and helps untie her from the post, and for a moment, an ominous feeling falls over Dagi, as if he had forgotten something.

As the last of the ropes fall, Dagi unfastens the gag preventing her from speaking, and the first words out of her mouth are "Watch out!"

Confused, Dagi looks around, and then up- just in time to see a falling Cathay with his blade drawn, but not in time to move out of the way. Dagi feels his body being pushed back as Ma'isha tackles him to the ground. As he rolls up to grab his bow, the Cathay lunges toward him with great strength and speed, but before he does, Jahirr jumps out from the shadows behind and bites into his leg, stopping his movement.

It is clear now what Jahirr intends, and so Dagi complies this time, and pulls back the strings of his bow as the Cathay strains against the might of Jahirr. At nearly point blank, the arrow strikes through the Cathay's throat and ends his life instantly.

Dagi curses to himself. He should have realized they would keep someone here to watch over her in case someone came to rescue her. Why would they not? The boarded door – from the inside, was proof that someone was here. It can only be locked from the inside, and it is not as if a bound hostage could lock the door.

Sometimes this one wonders if he had learned anything from Mother's teaching, if he can still make such silly mistakes. Were it not for both Ma'isha, the one whom he was rescuing in the first place, and Jahirr, that mistake would have been fatal. It should have been fatal- why did the assassin not strike until only after Ma'isha shouted?

This one would have had no warning to move, he could have killed Dagi easily. Perhaps he, too, wished to wait, in case Dagi let slip any information that could help him find the others? The same mistake this one made earlier, only this time it did cost this would-be assassin's life.

"Thanks for saving me." Ma'isha says, interrupting Dagi's thoughts.

"Same to you. This one should have known..."

"Do not worry about it, he is dead now." Ma'isha says with noticeable scorn, looking over to the fallen body of the Renrija Krin assassin.

"Did Mother-er, Kishari send you to find Ma'isha-Is she okay?"

"She is fine, as far as this one knows, but no, she did not send him, at least, not exactly."

"Then who did? And who are you? Wait...Your fur..."

Dagi turned around and pulled the cowl back over his head.

"This one is Dagi. That is what he goes by now. He does not go by other names anymore."

"Ma'isha heard about what happened to your father...She is sorry."

"What you have heard is a lie!"

"What? What do you mean?"

"The ones whom held you hostage are the ones who killed him, or are at least working with him. He did not die the way you would have heard."

"Is that why you're here then? To avenge him?"

This one felt offended by her words, at first, but did not show it on his face. She did not mean to offend him.

"This one is not sure if he would be lying if he said no, but...If it is, then it is not the only reason. Vengeance is a dangerous thing, Mother always told Dagi. 'To hunt another's life because one was lost, is to throw your own away', an old phrase she said, but...it is tempting. "

"Do not worry, vengeance or not, we have to stop them, they're planning to start a-"

"Riot yes, it could kill many. What else did you overhear? This one is curious. Do you know why they are doing this?" Dagi interrupts. It is best to get to the point in these circumstances.

"Well, no. They seem to be looking for someone though...Oh. Ma'isha sees now...but then why are you here if they are looking for you?"

"Dagi is not the only one they are looking for. What have you heard of the events at Torval recently?"

"Not much, Ma'isha only knows that some people tried to kill the Mane but failed, and then escaped, and that we were to be on look out in-case...Wait, you do not mean to say that you are one of them...You cannot be. You would not do that! Would you?"

"What if this one were to tell you that the Mane was killed?"

"But they said he survived! His brother was killed, and a couple of the assassins! You are not making any sense."

"The Mane is dead- Ra-Zara'chi is posing as his twin brother. The assassins that were killed were not assassins, they were trying to protect him. The ones who escaped are the only ones who know the truth, and that is why Ra-Zara'chi sent these assassins here to find us in Corinthe, after they found out this was where we were heading."

Ma'isha stood there for a moment, staring in shock as she tries to accept that the spiritual leader of the land is an imposter and everything she heard of the event is a lie.

"And now with the wanted posters..."

"Most would kill us on the spot if they knew who we were, but none would believe us. Why would they believe some children they never heard of over the long-standing and well-respected Mane?"

"This one believes you. Were it not you, and were it not for this...situation, perhaps that would not be the case, but it is as clear as the twin moons in an open sky now. We have to tell the others, they will believe Ma'isha!"

"Soon, yes, but not yet. There are still more assassins about, and if they know you have escaped, that could put both you and your mother at risk. There is also the riot they intend to incite..."

"But why? If they are here for you and your friends, why start the riot?"

"They seem to think it could kill us indirectly, but now this one thinks it may have a further objective, a sort of 'kill two birds with one stone' thing, and a lot of cats, yet it is only speculation. Killing us may not be their only goal here, at least for the Renrija Krin."

"What do you think they are planning?"

"Dagi does not know, and he would rather not guess for fear he is wrong."

"So what will you do?"

"Jahirr here can take you far away, some place safe for now, until everything is over. When he returns, Dagi will look for the other assassins and try to kill them before they can start the riot."

"Then Ma'isha wishes you luck...And, Dagi? If that is what you wish to be called."

"Yes?"

"If you feel the need, they put him next to your Mother in the graveyard just the other day. They put the greatest care and detail into the stonework."

"That is surprising, considering the circumstances."

"Things may not be so happy here, but they remember him, and still praise and respect him and your Mother."

"Thank you."

* * *

"So this is a 'Sweet roll', you called it?" La'zanja says, who by now actually seems to be quite enjoying what this one made after all.

"Yes, you have never had one before? Surely you have at least heard of it."

"Heard of it, yes, but our chefs have never made it for this one before."

"Well, it is more of a snack really, a simple treat, nothing special."

"Yet you chose to make it for a noble's daughter?"

"Actually, this one was making it for herself, she had not eaten in awhile and was making that while working on what she was planning to give you, before you called her up."

"Ah...La'zanja is sorry about that. Here, you can have this then, she is not sure she would have eaten that one anyway."

La'zanja hands me the smashed Sweetroll Khinashi had smeared in her face. This one examined it for a few moments, considering if she should actually eat it now that it was all smashed, but then decided to anyway, for her hunger demanded it. It is the thought that counts, and even though La'zanja has become more tolerable, this is still probably the extent of her generosity.

"Thanks."

"Perhaps more of our chefs should choose to make simple foods, La'zanja has never liked the fanciful meals her family eats down below, but she likes this."

"It is all a matter of preference."

For all her earlier rudeness, it is interesting to see that La'zanja is not like other nobles she has met. She does not seek fame, she does not want to rule, she prefers harsh honesty over fake respect, and now it seems she even prefers simple food.

This one has actually managed to not lie about anything yet upon her questions, except for her name being 'Ma'nashi' instead of 'Khinashi', but her luck could run out eventually. This one would prefer not to have to lie anymore, but the full truth would get this one in jail, at least, until things are cleared up.

It would be best if this one could move the conversation back to La'zanja and Ja'skar, but when she had mentioned how their planned marriage had ended, she did not seem happy to talk about it. It may be best to wait still some more before bringing that back up, but what else could Khinashi talk about that would be helpful?

Hmm, perhaps she could know more about Dar'nari? The name of the one who this one overheard earlier from Dazlah. He seemed to not want her to know he was here, at risk of death. That would suggest that Dar'nari is usually here, so maybe she could know about her, or have at least heard of her.

"Would you happen to know anything about someone named "Dar'nari" by any chance? Ma'nashi had overheard that name earlier in connection to Corinthe."

"Why? Are they a friend of yours?"

"No, but this one heard something about her that intrigued Ma'nashi."

"Hmm...Dar'nari" La'zanja says, seeming to think if the name recalls any memories. The fact it did not immediately was not a good sign.

"This one cannot say she knows or heard of any Dar'nari-"

"Ah, that is a shame."

"But this one heard of someone by a similar name, perhaps it is the person you speak of, perhaps not. Were they once known as Ja'nari?"

"Ma'nashi is not sure. Perhaps? Ja' is a common honorific for those of youth. Does Ja'nari live here in Corinthe?"

"No, but she once did many years ago."

"Ah, this one sees..." If they are no longer here, then it is unlikely that they are the same person, Dazlah seemed to think of her as close by.

"Ja'nari and a friend of hers went missing long ago, and were assumed dead, but there was a rumor that they actually left to join the Dark Brotherhood."

The Dark Brotherhood...

This one has heard of that name before, she read it in a book. The Dark Brotherhood is a group of elite assassins who murder people if they are called upon by the Night Mother. If someone wants another dead enough, they can perform a ritual that will call the Night Mother and send their request to the Dark Brotherhood, who then carry out that task in exchange for payment. A scary thought, to think someone could simply wish someone dead in the confines of their isolation, and they could actually get their wish. Yet, all of what this one heard suggests they keep their presence and identity a secret to all.

"How do you know she joined the Dark Brotherhood?"

"Well, this one did not say she knows, only that it was a rumor, but that rumor came from La'zanja's aunt."

"How did she know?"

"Because she was once a Dark Brotherhood assassin herself."

This one's eyes widened at the fact. Not just to know that La'zanja's aunt was a Dark Brotherhood assassin, but that she would reveal that so readily to someone she does not know well.

"You are surprised." La'zanja notes.

"Yes. How is it that you say that so easily? Does that not put your aunt in danger? Would that revelation not reflect badly on your family if it were known?"

"Well, aunt Khazi is no longer among the living for one. Others of my family would agree with you, in that it puts shame on our family, to that extent they have sought to hide it, and deny it. That does not change the truth, and this one does not like to lie."

"Still, perhaps not lie, but just not tell just everyone."

"You will not tell everyone of that, will you?"

"No, but-"

"Well there you go. Besides, she was not always an assassin, she left them after she found her mate. Apparently her contract was to kill him, but she had become too distracted perched outside his window when he was playing a song. When the bard had noticed her she lost her balance from the shock and nearly fell to her death, but the bard had caught her hand and, despite the obviousness of the circumstances, decided to help her. Because he had saved her life, she decided to spare his, but the Dark Brotherhood would never have allowed that, so they faked his death and she left the Brotherhood. They returned to Corinthe, fell in love, married and had a child, and united our tribes. Then she died, the bard and his son left, and then the tribes hated each other again."

"They united the Khajepako and Jahi'shir tribes?" This one asks, seeing that as an important piece of information to know.

"Ah yes, the bard was the brother of the current Khajepako chieftain. His name was Kherim. He did not live in Corinthe with the rest of his tribe until he and Khazi met outside of it however, but he was still respected as the Chieftain's brother. The tribes did not look kindly on their union at first but in the end it brought us close. Well, for almost two decades anyway. When Khazi died and and Kherim and Ma'jizad left, people learned of Khazi's old involvement with the Dark Brotherhood and not everyone liked that. It was the lies La'zanja's family sprouted to deny the fact and point the blame on someone else that brought upon the schism that divided us."

"How did Khazi die?"

"No one really knows. The common belief is that it was an accident, but it never added up. Many were blamed for her murder, but La'zanja thinks it could also have been the Dark Brotherhood, if they found out about her faking Kherim's death years ago."

Khinashi takes in all this new information, Khazi and Kherim sound like they were kind and interesting people, even if Khazi was an assassin once. It is a shame that their effort in uniting the tribes did not last after Khazi's death, but perhaps we will rectify that before the end of the day.

This one can avoid the topic no longer, J'shabi must already have convinced Ja'skar by now to make peace with La'zanja, Khinashi must make sure La'zanja will even accept the idea.

"So how do you feel about the Khajepako? Was it better when you were united, or do you prefer it now as enemies?"

"We are not enemies, we just do not get along well. La'zanja is not sure, they do not seem so bad, not as bad as her parents would make them out to be anyway. This one does not think any peace could last any longer than a generation anyway though, so it is unimportant. We are too different."

"You think so? This city has a long history. It was saved from complete destruction on the foundation of your two tribes making peace in the midst of battle."

"Yes, but that was in the middle of a war, and the city would have been destroyed otherwise. The bickering our tribes do now has not yet come to battle, if it did, perhaps that would be a different story, and peace would be a welcome opportunity."

"What about just you? When you and Ja'skar were together-"

La'zanja's semi-happy expression instantly fades away.

"La'zanja does not want to talk about that."

This one hangs her mouth open, paused in the middle of her sentence. Well that is not good. Did Khinashi not wait long enough? Did she approach it the wrong way?

"About Ja'skar or about-"

"None of it. This one does not want to talk about Ja'skar or marriage or anything of the sort. He is weak, and even if he were not, this one is no longer interested in any of that."

Some of La'zanja's old anger is starting to return in her voice, and Khinashi can tell her patience is running thin. Khinashi is standing on the edge of a cliff, and her next words could push her over, but yet if she says nothing at all, then she will have lost entirely.

"Do you hate him?"

La'zanja stares at this one for a few moments with anger, but then she looks away.

"No. He is stupid, foolish, weak, and far too nice for his own good, but La'zanja does not hate him. This one wishes he will find what it is he seeks with his...someone else, but La'zanja does not want to have anything to do with him."

For someone who hates lying and liars, this one wonders if La'zanja is not being completely truthful with her own self. This one could only just detect a sense that she may mean more than she says, but it is clear that no words would be able to convince her, it would take something different, and something Khinashi is not capable of.

As Khinashi looks out of the window and sees the orange sky, she realizes her time is up... There is no time left to change her mind, no time left to convince her.

The only thing she can hope now is that somehow J'shabi will have at least convinced the Khajepako to stand down, and for Dagi to have stopped the assassins. If not, or if that is not enough, then the riot will happen, and then...

Well it will soon be time to leave Corinthe...and go where?

"Sorry for asking. Ma'nashi will return to her duties."

Khinashi stands up and walks toward the door to leave.

"Oh, before you go, this one needs you to bring something downstairs."

"And what is that, then?" This one turns around to answer the still-sweetroll-encrusted face of La'zanja. It still amazes her how similar we look, except Khinashi would never like wearing the types of clothes she has. They are far too fancy and impractical, and the way she lets her braided hair hang down in the back, no, Khinashi would never like it that way.

* * *

Ja'skar's sword flung from the grip of his palm and spun in the air, stopping only when the tip of its blade drove into the dirt of ground just outside the fencing circle.

"Woah, what was that?"

"It was a move I picked up from Hammerfell, one of my friends there taught me it, although it wasn't actually supposed to disarm you, merely distract and open your defences..."

Hmm, perhaps 'my only friend from Hammerfell' would have been more truthful, I can't really consider the others from Hammerfell my friends.

"Ja'skar thought you were to be training this one with the basics, that did not look...basic."

"Sorry, I got a little carried away. I usually don't fight with swords, so I wanted to practice a bit myself too. Anyway, you need to keep better grip of the weapon so it doesn't fly off like that next time."

"But you just said earlier not to hold it too tightly, which is it?"

"Just hold it naturally, enough so you don't drop it, but not so tight that you can't arc your swings. An exception is when you're parrying, you'll want to keep a firm hold so you aren't pushed back."

"All of these conditional rules confuse Ja'skar. This one did not think fighting required so much thought in the midst of battle."

"Well, it's not supposed to. You want to keep an open mind when fighting, and rely more on instinct. You train a lot so you don't have to think of what to do, so it just comes naturally. Like playing an instrument, if you think about every note you're likely to miss one, but with enough practice, the motion is almost effortless."

"Ja'skar's instincts tell him not to fight in the first place."

"Then if you have to think about something, think about why you're fighting, what you hope to achieve, and less about every movement, they'll be much more fluid that way. Just don't let those thoughts overtake you, emotion can be a driving force, but also a tool to manipulate by your opponent if they so desire."

"But why would Ja'skar fight? To prove to his father that he can? To Ja'khan? They only seek to forge this one into their ideal leader, but Ja'skar does not want that."

"Well, when you're protecting someone, you'll want them to survive. When you're fighting to stop a threat, you'll think of the consequences that you're trying to prevent."

"There are more willing, better trained, and better prepared people for any of those situations."

"But what if the task falls to you? It would be good to learn, just in case."

"Ja'skar supposes."

"Well, lets try again. I can tell you already know a lot of the basics, and even some more advanced things like you said, and what I've shown you already will have filled any gaps. Your only real problem is that your heart isn't in it."

I walk over and pull the sword from the ground and return it to Ja'skar.

"This one does not know how to do that."

"That's something I can't teach you, it's something you need to find out for yourself."

Ja'skar looks ashamed, and it's hard to tell if he really wants to learn this, or if he's just too polite to ask me to stop. Without the motivation, no amount of training or tactics or knowledge of combat will make him a fighter. I have to wonder if I'm wasting his time, or if he's wasting mine.

"Once more, from the top. Remember, try to keep a better grip this time."

We begin our duel, and I purposely make sure to leave many openings for him to attack, but he only focuses on parries and defensive maneuvers, yet he seems to be aware of the opportunities available to him. I lock one of his parries with my sword, sliding blade against blade to bring his arm up to where a simple slash would be that is all that's needed for him to finally strike, but as the sword rises, it slips out of his hand once more and goes well beyond the training fence, over near the graveyard.

"That was not gripping it better."

I regret the sound of frustration in my voice and opt to go retrieve his sword to break the silence. I hop over the training fence, and as I walk, I take notice of the gravestones around me. I remember Khinashi saying something about certain northern Khajiit tribes burying their dead differently, or was it decoratively? Was it southern tribes? I can't remember, but this looks like any cemetery I've come across before.

I shake the thoughts and pick up the sword, but as I'm about to turn around, something in the distance catches my eye, and I notice someone standing by two of the larger gravestones. One new-looking, and the other older, but not aged. Then I realize that person is Dagi, placing something at the base of the graves. He hasn't seemed to notice me yet. I turn around to make sure Ja'skar is distracted and then walk toward him.

"Dagi? What are you doing?"

He seems frightened at my voice and runs away at the sight of me, and now looking closer I realize it was flowers he had placed there. I instantly regret saying anything, what he was doing here was his own business. Maybe those gravestones were of people he knew, or relatives, maybe his parents even, he used to live here after all. It isn't for me to know, so I don't approach them.

But as I turn away, my eye catches a name on a different grave and confuses me. I turn to look at it more closely, thinking I misread it.

Dazlah and Ja'nari

Two Dagi-raht orphans

who wandered too far

and remain a lesson

that some secrets

are best left unearthed

Beneath the inscription is a symbol of a hand painted on it. Dazlah is the name of the assassin leading the others against us in Corinthe. One of the two who killed Dagi's father, and who I mistook as traders when they were traveling to Torval. This can't be the same Dazlah, but yet, that symbol...It keeps appearing, and it was on that letter that Smallpaws found too, about the Clan Mother, and Dazlah is a Dagi-raht...

"You are going to return, yes? Or are we done?"

I turn to see Ja'skar approaching, then glance to make sure Dagi is out of sight by now.

"Lets practice a bit more. Here's your sword."

Ja'skar takes it begrudgingly, and it's becoming more and more clear he'd rather stop training. Yet, I just can't let myself give up.

I frown, but then remember the gravestone. Maybe Ja'skar would know something about it.

"Wait, before we go...Do you know anything about these people? Of Dazlah?" I say, pointing to the grave.

Ja'skar looks at it for a moment, and seems to remember something.

"Ah yes, Ja'skar does not remember them personally, for he would have been too young when they met their fate, but he remembers their tale."

"What do you know about them?"

"They were two Dagi-raht orphan children, outsiders to Corinthe. For a time they lived here and often stole from the Bazaar to survive. Most did not begrudge them their habits, for their circumstances made it understandable, but some merchants would often try to catch them, employing the guards and vigilantes in their aid. The two orphans made their own counter strikes against them and they became an infamous legacy throughout the town. Eventually their luck ran out however, and the guards managed to chase them out of the town. It was clear the orphans would not be able to outrun the guards forever, except they lost them when they passed the Black Door not far from the city. They could only trace their scent to the entrance of the door, whom no one knew how to open, and the two orphans were never seen or heard of again. Even though they were thieves, many of the townsfolk pitied the orphan children their fate beyond the door, believing it to be cursed. This gravestone was made in memory of them, and also to serve as a warning to any whom would follow them through it."

"And they're sure they died on the other side of the door?"

"No, but the Black Door has been there for longer than anyone in Corinthe can remember, and it has always been feared, it reeks of ominous magic and death, and so whatever fate befell them on the other side could not have been pleasant."

Hmm, so it could be the same Dazlah. I remember the hand on the door seemed similar to the one on the letter, and it is the same here. What use is that, though? It doesn't help us against Dazlah or his friends.

"Strange, well, thanks for explaining. Lets get back to the ring."

As we hopped over the fence, I noticed Ja'khan, Haskir, and Ma'krin walking up to us, with Ja'khan pushing Ma'krin forward. I can only guess what trouble Ma'krin got himself into this time, the look on the other two's faces don't look pleasant. They look...accusative.

"Ah, hello Ja'khan, Haskir, and-"

"Hello brother. It is good to see you are still alive."

"Ja'skar may not be as skillful as you Ja'khan, but he would not die from a little sword training..."

"Ja'khan doubts you would. That is not what this one meant."

The way Ja'khan said those words chilled me. What did he mean?

Ja'khan shoves Ma'krin with his foot forward, as Ma'krin reluctantly walks over to me. His expression was full of anger, but then, that was usually the case when people pushed him around.

"Your jokes confuse this one, Ja'khan. What did you come here for?"

"It has been brought to Ja'khan's attention that our guests may not have been completely truthful of their intentions here."


	12. Chapter 11: A Tale of Two Kitties (P4)

**Chapter 11: A Tale of Two Kitties (Part 4)**

I only just managed to suppress a gasp, and my body froze. He could only mean one thing when he said that...He knows who we are. He knows what we...well, he thinks he knows what we did, and he'd have no reason not to believe otherwise.

I looked to Ma'krin, whom did not seem surprised. He must already know they know. How are we going to get out of this?

"Ja'khan? What do you mean? Speak clearly." Ja'skar says. His voice was full of confusion. He looked to me as if I were a complete stranger to him.

Ja'khan looked at me with extreme disdain and rested one hand on the hilt of his sword, which was code for 'run and I will kill you'. His other hand procured a rolled up piece of parchment. As he unrolled it and passed it to Ja'skar, it was clear it was one of the wanted posters around town. A newer version.

Ja'skar's eyes widened as he looked over the poster.

"Ma'krin..." He says.

He remembered. He had heard that name when I said it, then. If there was any chance that he might not have recognized us from the poster, any chance now was lost. He knows, there's no point in hiding it, I just have to try and explain myself, it's my only option.

"Wait, before you do anything...Before you think anything...Just wait, I can explain."

"This one does not think there is anything to explain...J'shabi." Ja'khan starts. "You are two of the ones whom escaped Torval after failing to kill the Mane. Now, you are in Corinthe...hanging around the heir of the Khejapako tribe." Ja'khan's voice was unforgiving, and did not seem willing to listen to anything I'd have to say.

"I know what you're thinking...and it looks bad, I know, but that's not true-"

"Shabiyah...J'shabi. You lied to this one who you are." Ja'skar held the poster with weak hands, and stared off into the distance, as if reconsidering everything that I said to him.

"No! I didn't! Well, yes, I did, but-"

"Your ruse is over, assassin, your mission has failed, and so have two of your comrades already."

"What?"

"That was a clever move, Ja'khan must admit. To burn down that old farmer's warehouse. Between the fire and the town meeting, all of the guards have been tied down controlling it. It would have given you the perfect opportunity, but then an Alfiq learned of your identity and revealed it to us."

Burned down a warehouse? What? Why would any of us do that? Who of any of us would...Oh right, Smallpaws, and I guess Ma'ketra would have helped him.

"Listen, please, we didn't try to kill the Mane, I wasn't even there...It was Ra-Zara'chi."

"Yes, Ja'khan knows that already, Ra-Zara'chi tried to kill the Mane, as did-"

"No, he did kill the Mane! Rid-Rawl'vah is dead, we aren't-"

"Enough! Your lies fall on deaf ears, deceiver. Two of you have been dealt with already, and soon you will join them!"

I look at Ma'krin and Haskir, and wonder if Ma'krin is having any better luck explaining things with signs. I doubt it. What are my options now, what can I do?

"What about the other three?" Ja'skar speaks up at last, reading something on the poster.

"They will be found as well, in time, Ja'skar."

"But the back of this poster...This note, I recognize it, it's La'vani's paw-writing."

"That is unimportant, Ja'skar."

Ja'skar's constant interruptions have made Ja'khan and Haskir turn away. I tap Ma'krin on the shoulder, and every chance we get, we take a step away.

"But she says she suspects one of them might be at the Jahi'shir villa. She asked for help, she says La'zanja could be in-"

"The guards will handle it, or they will themselves."

"But you said the guards are all busy, and the Jah'ishir are not warriors, they could not fight off an assassin!"

"Ja'skar...Stop-"

"You would let her die, no? Admit it! You care so little of the Jahi'shir that you would ignore their plea for help, you would do nothing-"

"Ja'skar! These assassins came for you, to kill you, of course Ja'khan came here first!"

"Then you and Haskir can deal with them, and if they came for this one, it would be safer if Ja'skar were away."

Ja'skar turned around and ran as fast as his Ohmes-raht feet would take him.

"Ja'skar, stop! Do not go after her, you fool!"

With Ja'khan's last words, Ma'krin and I turn around, already several steps away now, and break out into a full sprint.

But Ja'khan and Haskir merely step in front of us from the side and we skid to a stop. I turn around and back again, how did they move so quickly?

"That fool! Ja'skar will get himself killed trying to protect that stupid girl...but that is what you wanted, is it not? Hmm? For him to die?"

"No, for the last time, no! We didn't come here to kill him!"

"Enough! This one will hear no more of your lies. Draw your blade, that this one might finish this quick enough to save his brother from his foolishness!"

It's clear now Ja'khan will not listen to any attempt at explanation. In a sword fight I would have little chance at surviving, let alone success. I know much more about the Khajiiti martial arts than sword fighting, but I don't know how to take on armed opponents without a weapon myself yet. If anything I've heard about Ja'khan is true, then he would be an expert for his age, and on top of his nearly double height and much more strength, a sword fight could only end one way between us. Ma'krin's chances against Haskir may be better, but I doubt he could take on both of them at the same time, and I wouldn't last long enough to help him.

My best bet would be to surrender and be taken to jail. At least there we would have a chance, fighting now would only get us killed, or at least, killed sooner.

"Alright, we surrender-"

Ma'krin growls at me, clearly not in agreement with my decision.

"No, Ma'krin, we have to. We stand no chance, and besides, no matter what they might think, we don't want to kill them anyway."

Ma'krin was reluctant, but agreed. Funnily, I thought of how I was just the same way as him when we entered the city and ran into those guards. But now it's clear it's what we have to do.

"As I was saying, we surrender. Just take us to jail, we don't want to fight."

Ja'khan and Haskir's expressions did not change, until suddenly, Ja'khan laughed, but not in a friendly way.

"Why? So you can try and break out of jail? So you can escape after your failed assassination, like in Torval? No. The Khajepako are not the town guards, we do not let murderers or would-be murderers rot in jail until they escape and continue their crimes. They meet their death at the ends of our claws, and our blades, and so will you. Draw your sword, little Ohmes, you have no other option."

Somehow his response didn't surprise me. It never would be that easy, now would it?

I noticed now that Ja'khan has not yet drawn his own blade. It must be some form of honor they abide to, I remember Ja'skar saying he was extremely loyal to old traditions, so he isn't willing to kill an unarmed opponent.

Wait. That gives me an idea. He won't kill an unarmed opponent!

I look to Ma'krin and mouth out the words of a small, unlikely, but possible plan that could save our lives, and then unstrap the clasp with the sword from my side. Ja'khan looks confused, as I hold it out in front of me and drop it. I kick it toward him.

"I won't fight you."

"That is not an option. You cannot surrender. You will fight and die, but not while unarmed."

Ja'khan kicks the sword back. I kick it far off to the side, past Haskir, who then moves to return it, and then I make my move.

Ja'khan is too confused as to what I'm intending when I swing my leg up, but he feels the pain thereafter as it brings him to the ground, stunned. It felt good, for all the insults he threw me earlier.

And then I run, as fast as I can, as fast as my feet will take me. Without a sword, Ja'khan's honor will prevent him from killing me, but if Ma'krin and I can outrun him and Haskir to the jail and turn ourselves in, they won't be able to touch us. It's not ideal, because we would be in jail then, but we would at least be alive!

Stunning Ja'khan will have bought me several seconds of a head start, and already I'm not too far away from the Bazaar, just south of the Khajepako district. When I make it into the crowds I'll blend in there and Ja'khan will have a harder time trying to find me. This could actually work!

Then I turn around and nearly scream as I see the Tojay-raht speeding toward me. I knew Khinashi said they were fast, but...

I strain my legs to take me faster, but it's no use trying to outrun a Tojay-raht, I should have learned from my footrace with Khinashi.

Suddenly I feel myself lifting up, at first I think it's Ja'khan, but then I feel the furry back of Ma'krin. I nearly fall off, with my head hanging upside down and seeing the Tojay-raht merely feet away, but my hand grabs the Mane around Ma'krin's neck and pull myself back up. We make some distance from the Tojay-raht finally and I calm myself down. I wasn't expecting him to do that, but thankful all the same. Tojay-rahts may be the fastest bipedal khajiit, but even they can't outrun a Senche or Pahmar.

Except now Haskir is after us, and I silently wish Khinashi had told Ma'ketra to join me instead of Ma'krin.

"Ma'krin! We have to find a shortcut to the jail, you won't be able to outrun Haskir much longer!"

Ma'krin grunted to show he heard me, and I looked around for ways we might take. The crowd of people around the Bazaar make looking difficult, and I wonder what they might think of the situation.

I give up searching and turn back to see Haskir steadily closing in. If he attacks from behind he could damage Ma'krin's legs, and we'd be stopped in our tracks.

Ma'krin growls, and I look forward to see what he-what in the world?

"Ma'krin, what are you doing!?"

I pull myself as close as I can to Ma'krin's back as he smashes into the wooden wall of a shop in the Bazaar, and then another as he breaks into the alleyways behind the Bazaar. Smashing those walls didn't seem to have so much as phased him.

The rubble that fell after breaking through stops Haskir from following our path.

"That wasn't exactly what I meant when I said shortcut, but I guess that works, just don't do that againnn-Ma'krin!"

I hug close again as he breaks through another wall out of the alleyway, and back into the main streets. We break through a stand of plant pots and some of the dirt and flowers covers my eyes.

When I finally clear them off, I'm presented with the sight of a metal pole hanging a sign for a shop just in front of me. Without enough time to duck I merely turn my hands around to grab the pole, and I find myself swinging up, around, and bringing my feet to balance.

As the shock of the moment fades I realize Ma'krin is now far ahead and I'm stranded on the top of a shop's sign pole. Looking at the many confused and accusative faces below I decide I'd rather take to the roofs.

For the next few moments I take in the peace of the surroundings, and catch my breath. I can see the jail from here, if I can just make my way there before-

The sound of feet slapping on the roof of the building I'm standing on interrupt my thoughts.

"This one underestimated you at first, Ja'khan will admit."

I turn around and see the Tojay-raht carrying two swords approaching. I slowly walk back.

"At first, this one thought you were merely another of La'zanja's spies to check on Ja'skar, like before, but when you spoke your, albeit false, intentions so clearly, you intrigued this one. One of her spies would never have admitted that, and that is the only reason this one let you continue, to sate Ja'khan's own curiosity. It is clear that was a mistake."

"What do you mean, La'zanja has sent spies before?" I say, trying to distract him while thinking of a means of escape. A fall from this height could break my legs.

"After their marriage had failed, she had often tried to send messages to him, to try and convince him to elope. Ja'skar, the fool he is, probably would have listened to those too, so this one hid them, and sent her a message of his own. Then it stopped, she probably gave up hope."

"So you're what kept them apart? Why does it matter to you who they want to be with?"

"The Khajepako and Jah'ishir are rivals! Ja'skar is the heir of our tribe, and he will one day be chieftain! He cannot forsake his duty by marrying her, it would shame our tribe, and make us weak."

"Did it before? With Kherim and Khazi?"

"No...But you have seen where that got them, and then our tribes."

I felt my back foot hit the ledge of the roof. I looked over to see the ground below, even this far away the Bazaar continues, and just beneath me was a fruit stand. The next building is a distance I wouldn't want to risk a jump for.

"It seems you are out of distractions and steps to take, little Ohmes."

"No, I can see one more."

I took a step back and dropped down off of the building, landing in a wheel barrel of strawberries, with a frightened-looking stall owner.

I ran off and heard Ja'khan jump down after me, and realized there was no way I'd be able to outrun him once again.

I turned back and tipped over a display of watermelons, and only stayed for a second to see them spill over the ground of the Bazaar. My ears told me it was a success, and made Ja'khan trip and fall. I remember what Khinashi said about Tojays and Suthays having bad balance, and not being able to turn as sharply as an Ohmes or Cathay could. If I'm lucky, onlookers may think Ja'khan was responsible for it, buying me more time.

I remember the jail being where we entered the town from, but if I go any further south I'll be in the Jah'ishir's district of the town, so I head west and make my way back into the alleyways. With so many houses and paths to turn, if I turn enough I might gain more distance on him, and he might not know which way I took.

I follow the roof of the jailhouse in the distance as I make my way through the maze, and sure enough, hear the sounds of Ja'khan following me.

I take more turns than I would to throw him off, and while it is buying me more time, he's starting to catch up. I take one final turn toward the jailhouse and run down the alley to its back, but when I get to the end, I realize it doesn't turn off to let me around to the front.

It's a dead end.

I look for any way out before Ja'khan gets here, there's a scaffolding full of crates and other supplies, but climbing it would lead to nowhere. But nothing else.

I run back, to try and get out of the dead end before he arrives, but it's too late, I see the form of Ja'khan approach, and all thoughts of escape slip from my mind.

"Enough of this nonsense, fight Ja'khan! There is nowhere to run!"

Ja'khan threw the sword at my feet, still not willing to give up his honor. I decide I have no other choice, and pick it up. If I'm to die, then I'll die fighting, and maybe, just maybe, I might have a chance at survival.

I take a few breathes to prepare myself, and unsheathe the sword.

"Finally! Do not worry, Ja'khan will make this quick and painless."

I ready my sword, and bring all of my skill and power to the frontline as he approaches, to begin our battle.

He lifts up his sword and charges forward, issuing a battle cry. I raise my own to prepare for it.

And suddenly the walls themselves burst open spontaneously around me, a blur of the moment, as I see a sideways Haskir being pushed out from the wall in front of me, into Ja'khan, and smashed into the scaffolding by Ma'krin. The scaffolding breaks and all of the crates and material it was holding collapses into a mountain crushing Ja'khan and Haskir beneath it.

And I just stand there with my mouth opening, holding a sword, wondering what just happened.

Ma'krin sneezes from the amount of dust rising up from the wreckage.

"Ma'krin! Where did you come from?"

He looks up, surprised to see me there.

I step by the wreckage and look down the hole in the wall from which he came, and see a couple other matching holes, with some confused faces looking through them.

I realize it was only the stone wall on the other side of me that stopped Ma'krin in his tracks, and with the rubble and wreckage covering Haskir and Ja'khan, it doesn't look like they'll be getting up anytime soon.

"Well, thanks for showing up when you did, I don't want to think of how that might have ended differently...Come on, lets get out of here."

* * *

This one thought hiding inside a Senche-raht would be the last of her crazy ideas for the day, but Khinashi cannot be so sure now. It is hard to tell if she really thinks this could work, or if her mind has truly snapped, but we shall see. It should not be much longer now before Khinashi finds someone.

But why would it not work? Khinashi has talked to La'zanja enough now to know her personality and attitude, at least, enough to pass...And she would have no reason to follow her, right? We do look pretty alike...She gave this one some old clothes to bring downstairs to give to the servant who cleans them, and now this one is trying to impersonate her.

It is the only way. She will not be convinced, but maybe Khinashi could convince her father to be nice, will he see through Khinashi's disguise? What if he asks a question that this one does not know?

So many things could go wrong, and the consequences...well they cannot get much worse as it is already, so there is some solace in that.

Khinashi pushes the large doors open to the dining room.

Yet, there is no one there.

Where is everyone? Are they not supposed to be eating dinner now, or have they already finished?

This one walks over to one of the large windows and looks outside. Khinashi can see a large gathering heading toward the Bazaar, but the shops would be closing around this time, usually. That must mean the Clan Mother's meeting is happening soon, if not already...No riot seems to have started if people are walking, however, maybe there is still time. Maybe Khinashi can find La'zanja's father out in the Bazaar, maybe it would be easier to get him to believe she is La'zanja there anyway? Maybe...

Khinashi pulls herself away from the window and walks down the dining room hallway. This one cannot get over how big this villa is, the ceilings are so high as to allow the Senche-rahts access to most of the house, every door wide and large, every window, even the stairs...

And now it is so empty, every sound is an echo, and it feels like the calm before a storm.

The doors to the dining room on the other end swing open hard. This one startles for a second, thinking it could be La'zanja, but then remembers it was the end of the hall's doors that were opened, it could not be her.

It appears to be an Ohmes-raht boy wearing anequinan clothes holding a sword and looking exhausted...wait...

"La'zanja! You are still alive!"

'Still' alive? That does not sound good. And Ja'skar...No, this one was not expecting to run into him. This is not good.

"Ja'skar! What are you, uh, doing here? And why are you surprised?" Khinashi says, trying hard to sound surprised, happy, when in truth she is scared. It is a good question though.

Ja'skar walks toward this one, and Khinashi wonders if it would be good to turn around or not. It may be dark in here, but if anyone would know an imposter, it would be Ja'skar. This one decides not to, it may be too suspicious, but she keeps her head low.

"Your sister La'vani sent a message saying she thought you were in danger, that there could be an assassin here trying to kill you...but..."

"Assassins? What is happening, Ja'skar?" This one is truly curious as to what he means, could Dazlah and the Krin be targeting the heirs?

"The ones from Torval, who tried to kill the Mane- they are here, in Corinthe. Two of them have been caught already after burning down the old farmhouse in the city, and another two are being dealt with by Ja'khan and Haskir."

That is not good news at all if he knows this, but what is this about burning down a warehouse? Why would any of them have any reason to do that? Who would have...Oh, Smallpaws probably, that does sound like him. Maybe it was to be a distraction for something.

This one does not know whom Ja'khan and Haskir are, but judging by the fact Ja'skar is here, this one would guess the other two are J'shabi and Ma'krin. That does not bode well, that is over half of us caught, or...

"What do you mean 'dealt with'?"

"Killed of course. To try and murder the Mane, it is the Khajepako way to put murderers to the sword. You know that."

"Ah, yes...Right..."

This one is worried for J'shabi and Ma'krin. They can hold their own, of course, but-

"So you are safe?" Ja'skar asks suddenly.

"Yes, there are no assassins here, perhaps La'vani was wrong, or they have left?"

Why does it feel like Khinashi is lying? She is truly not an assassin, after all, but then she is not La'zanja either.

"Perhaps, but it is strange...Strange that La'vani would ask Ja'khan in the first place for help, you know our families do not get along well, and if there is no assassin here..."

"It is probably nothing to worry about, Ja'skar, but it means a lot that you would come here to protect La'zanja."

So, how does one get out of this situation alive...Could this one just leave? Walk past him? Would that work?

This one tries it, but only gets as far as a step past him before he speaks.

"You are shorter than this one remembers, has it been so long? Your voice sounds strange as well, and when did you lose a tooth?"

"Ah, it has been, Ja'skar, it has been...awhile, perhaps you have grown? And voices change, you know? The tooth, though...it is a long story. Not important."

Ja'skar follows this one as she crosses the dining room.

"Where are you going? It is not safe to go outside with the assassins about."

"To the meeting of course! La'zanja is not a child, she can take care of herself."

Khinashi hears loud footsteps on the floor below, and gasps. It must be Zan'ir. If he were to see this one...Quadruped Khajiit have a nose and eye for liars, they are lie detectors, he would see through this one in an instant, and would alert Ja'skar, or deal with her himself.

Khinashi turns around and walks toward the other end of the hall.

"Actually, perhaps you are right, maybe La'zanja should stay here."

"So you are not going?"

Khinashi struggles to think of what to do- where to go. If she goes too close to La'zanja's room she may hear us talking, and then it would be over. If she stays, then Zan'ir will see her, and it will be over...This one cannot see any place to hide.

The footsteps become more than sounds, and soon the sight of the head of the Senche-raht walking up the stairs to this floor level comes into view. Khinashi's fur starts to rise.

"La'zanja? What is wrong? You seem troubled by something."

Zan'ir turns to face us, and so this one quickly turns around.

"No, nothing is wrong Ja'skar, just..."

"Just...?"

Zan'ir growls loudly, and Khinashi jams her eyes shut. Zan'ir knows, he will be making his way over here now. Perhaps Khinashi could use a calm spell again, would that work? Would he still be susceptible to it? What would Ja'skar think? This one highly doubts La'zanja knows magic, it would give her away instantly, to fix one problem only to create another...Unless this one could distract him while she casts it, but how?

Maybe this one could drop something and he would pick it up? No...Khinashi has nothing to drop.

The footsteps of the Senche-raht become louder.

What about telling him to look at something? No, that would make it too suspicious...

"Zan'ir? What is wrong?"

Hmm, perhaps she could...No...No, that would not be a good idea...That would not be right.

Zan'ir growls, as he becomes mere feet away, and Khinashi has no choice now, and so she grabs ahold of Ja'skar and kisses him.

"La'za-what are you-"

Ja'skar does not pull away and relaxes after a moment, and in that moment Khinashi pulls a hand away and casts the spell at Zan'ir just before he was within chomping distance.

And with that done Khinashi relaxes, the immediate threat is over, Zan'ir will not alert Ja'skar and now...now what will Ja'skar think? This one is pretending to be La'zanja...Khinashi is not exactly experienced in this aside from teasing Zhar when we were friends. How does one even stop?

"Ja'skar?" Khinashi did not say that. Khinashi could almost recognize it, but it was not a tone she had ever heard from her before, it was a tone of surprise, shock, confusion, and a hint of jealousy. Most importantly as the building is mostly empty it could only be one other person.

Ja'skar pulls away and looks at the one whom entered the room.

"What? Who are...What?" Ja'skar says, in about the same tone as La'zanja had.

Ah, this is bad, very bad. This could not have been anymore awkward...

"So is this who you've been seeing then? One of my servants? La'zanja's new chef?"

Well it is good to know she still thinks of this one as her chef...

"Chef? What? This one thought...But if you are La'zanja, then who is...?"

"Hey! Why are you wearing this one's old clothes? La'zanja told you to bring them downstairs!"

Khinashi was about to make up some elaborate excuse that would miraculously get her out of this situation but was interrupted by Ja'skar before she could speak.

"You are not La'zanja?" The tone was quite understandably accusative and full of anger and malice. Ja'skar drew his sword, and Khinashi took a few steps back, trying to think of what to do.

"Hah! What, you thought she was La'zanja? Well, perhaps we do look a little alike...But if you thought she was this one, why were you kissing her, hmm?"

Before anyone could think, move, or speak further, Zan'ir yowled in fear like a cat twenty times less his size and stomped about the dining room, shaking the entire house, and making all of us lose our balance.

"Zan'ir, what are you doing!?" La'zanja shouts, as she falls to the ground.

This one is as confused as her, this does not seem to be natural...But Khinashi cast a calm spell...Right? Or was that...not a calm spell...

The heavy stomping from the Senche-raht cracks the floor around the edges, and the center of the room falls through to the room below, spreading to the rest, as all of us are sucked in and brought to the ground floor, and everything is a mess.

Zan'ir continues his rampage through to the entrance and smashes down the wide doors flat, allowing the light of the evening into the villa.

Khinashi brings herself up, dusting off the rubble and slowly sneaks away hoping to get out of the door before the others recover.

"You! It is you! You are the assassin!" Ja'skar shouts at the top of his lungs.

"Assassin? Ja'skar? What is going on, what do you mean?"

"She is Khinashi!"

"Who?"

"The one who bit off the hand of the Mane, who tried to kill him! She came here to try to kill you!"

"Well she did not do a very good job at it."

"This one can explain!" Khinashi shouts. "Khinashi is not an assassin, she did not come here to try to kill you, she is here to try to help you, there will be a riot that will happen in the city, and only you two can prevent it!"

"Lies! So many lies, enough of this! Ja'skar will hear no more of it!"

"No, you have to listen, at the meeting, the riot will happen then, soon! We have to get there so you can get your parents to prevent it! There are people who are going to try and turn your families against each other!"

"Enough! You are a murderer and will meet a murderer's death, at the end of Ja'skar's blade! Prepare yourself to fight, and hope the gods have mercy on you!"

"But Khinashi does not want to fight, she does not want to hurt you-"

Ja'skar did not let Khinashi finish, as he lunged toward her with his blade, swiping out at her neck. Khinashi only just backed away in time and rolled on the ground, if she had been any later, it would have been her head that was rolling.

Ja'skar did not give her any further time and continued his attacks as Khinashi jumped up. This one's Suthay agility aided in that respect. So it seems she has no choice, Khinashi does not want to kill him, but perhaps she could merely wound him, to bring him down...to allow her the chance to escape...

This one conjured forth an ethereal blade, remembering the spell from her training. She did not use it much, but then, she did not fight people with swords much, only tidbits of training with J'shabi over a couple years.

We met together blade to blade and clashed, and it was difficult for Khinashi to match his power, his anger and emotion made his blows stronger than they should have been able to be.

Khinashi swept at his legs but he parried, she tried to disarm him but had to evade his own attacks. She tried to feint and distract him, but he knew Khinashi's every tactic, it was as if he knew all of what J'shabi taught her.

Ja'skar swung ferociously and Khinashi jumped back with her sword raised to block. The swords connected, but the top half of Khinahsi's sword dissipated, and soon with it the rest of the sword. This one is not sure conjured swords are supposed to do that...

Khinashi ran and thought of what she could do. Ja'skar is giving her no opportunity, merely flaying out without thought or strategy, his emotions overtaking him. She must do something to distract him, to buy her time to think properly.

And so she conjured a familiar to chase after him, focusing its attacks on his legs.

"You witch! You are so weak as to need magic to help you? Hah!"

Ja'skar's taunts did not phase this one, most Khajiit do not appreciate or understand magic, this is no different. If she could disarm him, she would not have to worry about his sword cutting off her neck every few seconds...How would this one do that?

Ja'skar kicked the familiar that was attacking his legs away and it flung into the wall and dissipated. He charged toward this one again.

Khinashi aimed her magic toward his sword arm and sent forth a bolt of lightning, which made him lose hold of his sword, and the power of the spell sent it flying off. La'zanja ran toward it to retrieve it. This one could not allow her to do that. Khinashi casted a fear spell at her and made contact, it would not harm her, but it would keep her safe and out of the fight, but her screams of fear did not seem to imply she was not harmed from Ja'skar's perspective...

"You fiend! Leave her alone!"

If Ja'skar had not reached the pinnacle of rage before, he did now. He retracted his claws and tackled this one before she could move out of the way, his arms flailing madly toward her, scratching into skin, scratching into her arms shielding her neck, and blood was spraying everywhere.

This one could not move from his weight, and the claws were digging deep. Khinashi cast an oakflesh spell to harden her fur and skin, and used this unnaturally thicker skin to punch Ja'skar in the face and knock him off.

Khinashi leapt up from the ground and saw that Ja'skar's nose was bleeding, but it did not stop him from leaping toward her again. This time Khinashi moved out of the way, and focused on his legs. He is disarmed and weakened now, but just as fast. Fire would be too dangerous, and shock would be ineffective, and so this one focuses on the power of ice and freezes his legs solid, losing all nerve and making him fall to the ground.

His anger died down now as he realized his predicament, and was replaced with fear.

"Please, do not harm her...Kill this one if you must, but leave her be..."

"Khinashi never had any intention of harming either of you, no matter what you may think. This has not changed. She was telling the truth earlier. Think on that."

"No...You are lying, you must be! If you are not going to kill us then leave, but do not stay and lie!"

Khinashi is sad that even now he will not believe her, but it does not matter anymore. This one leaves them to their reunion and steps over the rubble out of the villa, and into the courtyard.

Perhaps she can find the others and help them, or hope for the best.

As this one walks she notices a few guards walking toward her, they would have seen her by now but they do not seem alarmed. Khinashi considers running but then they speak up as they approach.

"Ah, La'zanja. Is everything okay? We saw Zan'ir run out of the villa in a fit of fear and figured something happened." Khinashi recognizes this guard as Keshna from earlier.

"Oh, well, uhm...Yes, but everything is alright now-" Khinashi speaks, still trying to make use of her battered disguise.

"Keshna, you fool! That is not La'zanja, she does not have a missing tooth, it is the assassin, Khinashi!"

"This one knew that, Rojar, she was just...testing her!"

"Khinashi can explain, this is all just a misunderstanding!"

"You will have lots of time to explain when you join the rest of your friends behind bars!"

* * *

Dagi jumps from roof to roof, following Jahirr's trail. His ability to track people by their scents has proved invaluable, already one assassin is down, only two more Renrija Krin remain, and then Dazlah himself.

This one will take much pleasure in his demise...No, no, Dagi should not think that. He will die because he is a threat to all, but not because of vengeance. Not because of that.

This one almost loses Jahirr from his train of thought, such things are distracting and Jahirr moves fast. We are near the Khajepako district, and the gathering crowds into the Bazaar at the center, where a stand was put for the Clan Mother to make her announcement. She is not yet there, so there is still time to prevent the riot.

Jahirr looks up to Dagi to check for him, this one waves to show he is watching, and Jahirr moves close to a Cathay wearing the standard garb of a Khajepako warrior. This must be our target, whom is not a Khajepako warrior at all.

Dagi nods and Jahirr retreats to the shadows before he is detected, it is Dagi's turn to be useful. This one takes a vantage point from the top of the roof just behind him. He stands alone, this is good. An arrow will end his life, or at least wound him enough for Jahirr to finish, but although he stands alone, the ones closest by could hear the act, and, as he is wearing his disguise, we would essentially ignite the riot ourselves...Dang it, we need a distraction!

This one did not foresee this, why did he not foresee it? So obvious, now that we are here. Whom will be able to cause it? Jahirr must stand by to take care of the body, Dagi must knock the arrow...The others are busy with their own tasks and it would take too long to find them anyway...

This is not going well.

Dagi prepares to descend the roof and inform Jahirr of this development, or lack thereof, when a sound of a crowd of Khajiit gasping and shouting tears his attention away. It comes from below, and Dagi's first worry is that the riot has begun, but that fear is debunked when he sees a Senche and Ohmes break out from the wall of a shop and ride into the alleyways, with a Pahmar and Tojay-raht looking for ways to pursue them.

Ma'krin and J'shabi? What are you doing, what is happening?

This one takes note of the crowd investigating the act, and the chatter of voices would prove a perfect distraction...

The target below looks around, possibly for his allies, wondering if they are responsible and what it means. The only answer he gets is an arrow in the back of his throat as he falls to the ground.

Jahirr moves forward quickly and drags the body out of sight. As we discussed, he will hide it temporarily for now. When all of them are dealt with, the disguise will be destroyed so as to not allow anyone to find the corpse and make incorrect assumptions of their faction. That would simply put our efforts in vain. Dirty work, but necessary.

We are done here, the Khajepako impersonator is no more, we move to the Jah'ishir side of the Bazaar.

Dagi follows Jahirr once more from the heights of the rooftops, as he treks through the alleyways. This one lefts his mind drift...What will happen once this is over, if we prevent the riot? Corinthe will be safe, but no one will have ever seen any danger to prevent, because it never happened. They may simply not believe us, they may think Ma'isha is mistaken, and our call to help...Will that be honored?

Dagi remembers Clan Mother Kishari and her husband, Tarel at-Taneth, to be honorable people. Adopting Ma'isha is proof of their kindness. In Elsweyr, honor is not a common trait to come by. Khajepako maybe, but in a different way. They might, yes, but what of the others? Would they be willing to aid in a revolution against the false Mane in Corinthe? The ones in Torval, they would not know...They would fight for him, many innocents would die simply because of their ignorance. Yet what other option is there? If we set foot in there, no questions would be asked, the Mane would make sure we were killed on sight. Why would we need to return at all? Dagi is not sure he would want to go there...The memories of Mother's death still cling to this one when he sees those trees...

Once more, Dagi let his thoughts slip too far away and it takes a few moments to find Jahirr once more. He is looking up at this one, and although it is far, Dagi can tell his look is that of impatience.

He points an arm at our target, much like the last, this assassin stands alone in the garb of a Jah'ishir noble. This assassin seems to have been unlucky in his choice of disguise, the rich garb he wears would not protect him at all if he would get amidst the fighting, but this Suthay-raht seems more keen on sticking to the shadows and alleyways. Yet his true error lies in neglecting to look up, and now it is too late, as his body crumbles to the floor and all sense of life escapes him. Jahirr drags the body away as before.

The Renrija Krin in Corinthe are no more, but their poisonous words remain. Dagi wonders even still, if this riot's purpose is not only to kill us, but something more? Turning the tribes against each other would suffice a riot by itself, yet they seek to turn the people against the Clan Mother and the guards, but for what purpose? A secondary plan should they think, correctly, that their primary would fail in igniting the riot, or something beyond that?

Jahirr looks up at this one, and I give him the signal to continue his search for our last remaining target, the one whom killed Dagi's father, but a sound from nearby breaks our concentration.

It is the sound of a wailing Senche-raht, and it comes from the villa of the Jahi'shir. The sound becomes a sight as the mammoth-sized Khajiit breaks through the large doors and stampedes out beyond the courtyard. What has happened there to cause this?

The guards around the meeting consider investigating this higher priority, and move forward to approach. Yet, it did not start the riot, so it is of no importance to us.

Dagi looks down to check for Jahirr to continue, and curses. Jahirr was too distracted by the sound of the Senche-raht that he did not notice the guards walking over to him from behind. Several grab ahold of him, he shakes most off, but when the touch of a blade is held against him he relaxes, understanding the situation.

Dagi jumps back to stay out of view of the guards. If they saw this one they would get Dagi and Dagi-raht to apprehend them, and this one would soon share the same fate as Jahirr. The guards push Jahirr back towards the jailhouse. Without Jahirr, it will be much more difficult to find Dazlah in time.

This one stays low on the roof to think and stay out of sight. There were three Krin members and then Dazlah. One of the Krin was guarding the hostage, the other two were disguised as opposing tribe members to ignite the riot by killing someone, most likely. What would that leave Dazlah to do, then? He was not wearing a disguise last Dagi saw him. Perhaps he would simply let the others do his work whilst he overlooked or sat around? No. From what little Dagi knows of him, he seems to enjoy death, he would opt to be at the front lines. Yet that would be suicidal if he were on the ground floor when the riot starts...

And he is a Dagi-raht.

This one jumps up and returns to his search, only now looking to the roofs for his target. Almost instantly, Dagi catches movement along the roofs, and knows it must be him. He is far away, though, and so Dagi squints to see what he is doing.

He is holding something, and pulling an arm back, focusing intently...No, he is drawing and aiming a bow is what it is! Dagi follows its trail to the center of the Bazaar, where Dazlah is aiming...

Now all becomes clear of what this riot's other intention is.

It is not simply to kill a few children in a crossfire, that is why Dazlah is here, but the Krin...They must seek to use Corinthe as a staging ground for recruitment toward their goal of liberating Leyawiin, by overthrowing the city's leadership entirely.

Starting with the Clan Mother.

Dagi pulls out his bow and knocks an arrow as fast as he can, but is not close enough to guarantee a perfect shot at Dazlah. It is possible, but Dagi is not like Mother, he could miss...and if he misses, Dazlah will not, Kishari will die, and if it came to a direct fight, Dagi would not stand a chance against him.

The crowd around the Bazaar goes silent as Clan Mother Kishari steps up to the stand to begin her speech to decide what to do beneath the new moons.

But Dagi could shout, and Kishari might have a better chance at surviving. It would distract both Dazlah and Kishari. She would live, but then Dagi would have no chance of killing Dazlah, for his presence would be immediately discovered.

Dagi could save Kishari's life but miss his chance at revenge, or he could risk her life and stop Dazlah immediately.

There is no time to think this over.

This one knows what he should do, but...It is so tempting, and within reach. It would be so simple.

Dagi let loose his arrow, hoping to the gods and divines for luck. Hoping his desire for revenge would be sated.

But that hope was crushed when the arrow struck just beneath Dazlah, and he remembered why he hated the gods. Dazlah turned to see from where it came, and his smile was one Dagi knew would scar him for the rest of his life.

Dazlah did not miss.

His arrow was fired, it soared through the air toward its target, and Dagi could not do anything now to save her. He could have, but he had made his choice, and this is the consequence.

Kishari dropped to the ground a lifeless husk. Kishari, the Clan Mother Dagi knew as a child, who taught him as she taught all of the cities children. It almost felt like Dagi was the one who shot her, with the guilt that rushed through him as those near her ran over to see what happened.

It did not take long for the already-tense crowd of Khajiit to react.

Some screamed, some ran, some drew their swords.

Some pointed fingers.

And then the fighting began.

* * *

The door to the room Khinashi has only seen once before, when we first arrived in Corinthe, was swung open, and the eyes of Tarel at-taneth stared angrily into hers.

"This one caught the Suthay mage girl Khinashi like she promised. With little to no help from Roger."

"Roger is not even going to bother this time...Shall this one put her in the cell with the others?"

Tarel nodded, looking up from a letter or such he was writing. As we passed by Khinashi could just read who it was addressed to. The Mane.

The gate to one of the empty cells was opened and Khinashi was shoved in with it slammed behind her. To her side in the other cells, Khinashi could see the sad faces of her friends. Hope dwindled as she recognized J'shabi, Ma'krin, Smallpaws, Ma'ketra, and even Jahirr are here.

But then, she realized, Dagi was not, and a small bit of hope rekindled that perhaps we still have...

Bah, it is no use. We are caught and trapped in this cell. We have failed.

"There's still one more." Tarel tells the two guards, as if reading Khinashi's thoughts.

"Hmm? What do you mean, these were all that were here earlier, Roger is sure-"

Tarel points at the poster at the depiction of Dagi to interrupt him.

"Yes, you fool, we have to find the calico coloured Dagi. He should not be too hard to find. There is not many Khajiit with fur such as that."

"There was once though, some years ago, he lived here in Corinthe, did he not?"

"Keshna does not know, but that does not matter! Come!"

The two bickering guards leave and all that remain is us in the cell, and Tarel at his desk. Khinashi looks over to J'shabi, but doubts Tarel would appreciate us talking.

"So I suppose you're going to try and get me to believe some story about how you're all innocent, that you didn't try to kill the Mane, that you weren't here to kill Kishari and the heirs of the two founding tribes?"

Tarel did not move when he spoke, and he did not stop writing, but this one could tell the question was directed at her.

"Well, if J'shabi already told you and you do not believe her, then it would be no use to repeat it."

Tarel sighs, stops writing and turns to face us.

"I just don't get it. Why? What do you gain from doing all of this? What's a group of kids and an elder Pahmar-raht get out of killing the Mane and other leaders of Elsweyr? Who's paying you? What are they paying you?"

"No one is paying us, because those were not our goals. Whether you believe us or not, it does not matter, for when you send that letter to Ra-Zara'chi, because it is not Rid-Rawl'vah, he will merely tell you to kill us and it will be irrelevant."

"Then what were your goals, that you so claim to be here for? Why have you come? Tell me that, then."

A loud uproar of yelling and screaming is heard aboveground, and the sound of everyone running at once. Moments more and the sounds of swords clashing is added to the mix. Tarel stands up from his chair.

"To prevent this." Khinashi says.

Tarel looks back at us with uncertainty before donning his helmet and sword and running out of the door. Now it is only those of us in the cell.

"So this is it, huh, Khinashi?"

"This one guesses so."

"There's no spell you can use, there's no way you can pick the locks?"

"Not from this side."

J'shabi sighs in disappointment, and Khinashi feels guilty. She must have thought there was still some way to get us out, but unless someone else frees us, we will remain here. Until the riot finds its way inside.

Khinashi sits down to rest, and feels strangely calm despite all that is happening. At least right now we are safe, and hearing the sounds of battle and screams outside feels distant. It is like the sound of rain hammering hard on a roof, only a bit of wood preventing the downpour from falling on you. Except the noise here is not rain, but people, but like rain they will flood inside and consume us. Khinashi notes the similarity to the old stories of the prisoners trapped in Torval's jail in the middle of summer.

This one hears the door from upstairs crack open, and wonders if it is someone seeking refuge from the fighting. They would have better luck running out of town, at least then they would have a chance, and this jail is close to the edge.

No footsteps are heard however, perhaps it was just the wind?

The door to the room we are end opens now and Khinashi wonders why she could not hear them. Until it becomes obvious the answer when a white-furred Alfiq enters the room.

Smallpaws and Ma'ketra move in unison at the sight at her, although Ma'ketra seems more angered.

Strange, this alfiq looks similar. Is this La'vani, the one from earlier we saw? La'zanja's sister?

"La'vani? Is that you?" Khinashi asks. The alfiq does not seem to give any indication she heard this one, merely moves about the room in a direct route.

"La'vani? She's the one who wrote the letter to Ja'skar. She's why we got caught in the first place."

The alfiq continues to ignore us and jumps up on Tarel's desk and opens some of the shelves, looking for something.

"Well from her point of view it would be justified, J'shabi."

"Yeah, but what's she doing here now?"

"This one does not know, but it does not matter really."

The alfiq seems to find what she was looking for and hops off of the desk with something in her mouth. She turns to face us and walks up to Khinashi's cell. Poking her head between the bars and nearly getting stuck, she drops the object and runs back off, out of the room.

Then I realize that object is a key.

I lean over and pick it up, my mind completely and utterly confused.

"What is that? What did she do, Khinashi?"

Without answering J'shabi, before getting her hopes up, Khinashi stands and walks to the door of her cell. She bends her arm and fingers through the bars and turns the key. The door swings open.

"Apparently she has given us the means of escape."

J'shabi stares blankly, clearly speechless. This one moves out and unlocks all of the other cells.

"What? But...Why? She got us in here in the first place, that doesn't make any sense."

"Nothing makes any sense anymore J'shabi, but we are free! We can get out of here, and out of Corinthe!"

The thought that we might still have a chance of survival settles in everyone's mind, and the room becomes full of mewing and roars of happiness.

"Then lets go!"

We all make our ways up the stair and out of the jailhouse, and instantly Khinashi can smell a thick scent of blood in the air. The sounds of fighting become much louder, and the sights are just as bad. The orange sunset in the background, as buildings catch on fire, make it seem like all of Nirni is in flames.

Jahirr nearly pushes Khinashi over getting past her. He runs as fast as he can into the direction out of the city.

"Jahirr!" This one calls out, but knows he is too far now to hear her.

"Where would he be going? Jahirr is not one to leave us behind without a reason." Khinashi continues.

"Maybe he's going to get Dagi? He might have gotten out of the city already, and so should we."

This one looks out into the distant fighting and scans the scene. She nearly gasps when she sees the two figures on the rooftops. Even this far away she can recognize them who they are.

"Dagi is still in the city."

"What?" J'shabi nearly shouts.

"Up there! On the roofs, there they are. Dagi and Dazlah, they are fighting!"

When this one said that, she realized fighting is perhaps not the best word. It appears more like a chase.

"Is he insane? Isn't Dazlah a trained professional? He can't last in a fight against him. We have to help him, together we might be able to save him."

"J'shabi, even if we could somehow get through the riot alive long enough to get on the roofs, we would be of no help to Dagi. They are...Well, Dagi and Dagi-raht, they can climb much better and faster, we would be of no use to him up there."

"But we can't just stand around and do nothing, we have to help him!"

"Yes, we do, but not in that way. That would be useless." Khinashi sighs. "Khinashi heard about someone else who wanted Dazlah dead. If only we could have found Dar'nari."

"Dar'nari? Do you mean Ja'nari?"

"Sorry, Khinashi was thinking outloud. No, Ja'nari is probably someone else-wait, how do you know of Ja'nari, J'shabi?"

"Ja'skar told me about her and Dazlah earlier, I was at a graveyard and saw their names on a plaque. They went missing behind that Black Door and were assumed dead."

"Dazlah and Ja'nari? It said Dazlah?"

"Yeah, but I figured it might have been a different Dazlah since, well, they think they died..."

"Khinashi heard Ja'nari and her friend were assumed dead, but a rumour was they left to join the Dark Brotherhood, but if her friend was Dazlah..."

This one thinks over everything they have seen in Corinthe, and it all fits together like a puzzle. The symbol on the door was the same as the one on the letter from the Clan Mother. Dazlah and Dar'nari must be assassins from the Dark Brotherhood, and the Black Door is their hideout! This one heard that they had outposts outside of cities...it makes so much sense now.

"Khinashi...No, I can tell what you're thinking, and no. We're not going back there. There's no telling what we could find."

"What we will find is someone who could save Dagi's life! Come on!"

"Khinashi!" J'shabi shouts as this one digs her feet into the ground into a sprint.

* * *

Dagi leaps across the roof gap to another and rolls upon landing to dodge an arrow flying overhead. This one pushes himself up to draw his bow and release an arrow while Dazlah makes the jump, but cannot do so fast enough under the pressure. Dazlah makes the jump and draws his blade, and Dagi is forced to leap back and off the building to evade his swing. This one grabs ahold of a window on his descent and continues running as soon as his feet touch the lower roof.

Dazlah takes to the bow and relays a volley of arrows at a speed this one could never hope to achieve. One drives into Dagi's shoulder, and this one falls to the roof from the pain, Dazlah does not waste his opportunity and continues showering arrows. Dagi rolls off of the roof and onto the awning over one of the Bazaar's shops. This one pulls the arrow out of his shoulder and takes in the bloody scene of the Bazaar.

Senche-raht stampede and destroy buildings, others are up in flames. The guards uselessly try to put down the riot, but it has gone into an all-out war, no inch of ground is safe. This one is safe from Dazlah's arrows from here. Moving back up would put him in range to be killed, but there is no other place to go, and Dazlah will eventually catch up to him.

"It is a lovely scene is it not? You should jump in, you would probably be safer there than from this one, which is to say, not safe at all!"

Dagi did not look to see where the voice came from, but instinctively moved to the side. Good, too, for a dagger drove into the walls just where he was hiding.

A loud roar interrupts us as we notice a Senche-raht charging toward us head on from the Bazaar. Dazlah jumps back to get to a different roof, but Dagi jumps off of the walls of the building onto the Senche-raht's back just before it crashes into him. The Khajiit utterly destroys the shop and the only remains are rubble, but arrows other than from Dazlah now fly through the air dangerously close, as guards try to bring the Senche-raht down.

The Khajiit takes a new direction and runs, and Dagi jumps off when it passes by a safer-looking roof top away from Dazlah.

Dagi stops to catch his breath and take in the new surroundings for opportunities to make use of. This one stands on the Temple of Jone and Jode northeast of the Bazaar near the Clan Mother's house. It has a large tower with a bell, and a long rope which connects to the Inn on the other side of the Bazaar. Flags and other symbols or decorations are often hung from it.

Dagi decides it is the safest place, allowing Dagi a vantage point against Dazlah and a place to hide in-between shots, and so makes the long climb to the top.

At the top, Dagi looks for where Dazlah might be and readies his bow. An arrow hits the bell he stands by and reveals Dazlah's presence nearing the bottom of the tower. How could he have gotten there so fast? Dazlah starts to climb up.

Dagi pulls back the strings and releases an arrow at him, but Dazlah jumps out of the way and clings to another part of the tower, continuing his climb.

"Do not think your little magic trick will save you this time, it may have worked in Dune, whatever you did, but now you have nowhere to run!"

This one does not know if he could do that again at will in the first place, Dagi is still not even sure what happened, or if it happened at all. This one does not know anything about magic. Dagi only remembers waking up and having a bad headache and sore body miles away from Dune afterwards...

Dagi shakes away the distraction and releases more arrows at Dazlah, but every single one misses, even pre-emptivley guessing his movements does not seem to catch him.

As Dazlah draws near the top, this one considers climbing back down the other side, but Dazlah can jump to the side so fast he would catch him on the way down. Even if not, it would be a simple matter for him to shoot an arrow at Dagi during his descent, as this one cannot move as fast as him.

Instead, Dagi looks to the rope hanging across the Bazaar and shimmies across it. The flags will make shooting an arrow an improbable move.

This one tries not to look down, but cannot help it. The scene of fighting below feel like the spikes at the bottom of a pit that would tear him to pieces if he fell, but of course the height itself would kill him first.

Dagi looks back to see Dazlah cutting away at the rope from the other end, and realizes now how bad of an idea this was. This one tries to move as fast as he can to the other side, but the weight of the rope above him becomes nothing, and Dagi finds himself swinging down above the bloodbath of the Bazaar.

Smashing into the wall of the Inn at this speed would ensure his death, but a different executioner opted to end his life, as Dagi sees the Senche-raht from before open his mouth as Dagi swings in.

The teeth of the Khajiit clamp down too late, though, and Dagi finds himself sliding safely against his tongue. This one can feel the Senche-raht move his head up to force Dagi down into his throat to be swallowed alive, but Dagi holds onto the rope still and uses it to climb the otherwise impossibly slippery situation. At the top, this one takes out his dagger from his belt and stabs it into the roof of the Senche-raht's mouth, forcing it to open from pain. In that moment, Dagi swings out with the rope and slams into the wall of the Inn and begins to scale it to the top.

* * *

"Are you really sure this is a good idea?" J'shabi says.

"Absolutely not."

"You're suggesting we walk into a secret hideout of professional assassins who kill without qualm and ask them to save Dagi."

"That is not how we will word it, but yes. They could just as well kill us as speak to us."

"Yet...Here we are?"

"Here we are."

This one looks to the door before us as we approach. It has not been a day since she last saw it, but now knowing what she does about what is behind it, it looks different.

"So how are we supposed to even get inside? I take it knocking doesn't work?"

"This one should have realized what this door was when we first found it. From what Khinashi knows, the Dark Brotherhood sanctuaries always have doors that ask questions, and to get it to open, you have to answer it correctly."

"And if you don't answer it right?"

"Well, it does not open. What, did you expect it to kill you or something?"

"I'm not exactly sure what to expect from a talking door where Sithis-worshipping killers lurk. How do you even know about all of this anyway?"

"Father brought a lot of books back from his travels. It is a shame Elsweyr does not permit books from the other provinces to the public or this one would share them more, he had to smuggle them in...But that is not important right now."

"So the books told you what this door's password is?"

"No, but it did say each phrase ends in "my brother" so that is a start, yes?"

"You're just going to guess? Dagi's life depends on a guess?"

"Shh!"

Khinashi steps close to the door and waits for the chilling voice to speak. This one already knows the question and has been thinking of an answer on the way here, and hopes it will work. If not, well, maybe something else will, it has to make sense, right?

The door speaks.

"What is the feeling of life?"

"Happiness, my brother." Khinashi says as clear as she can.

"You are not worthy."

Khinashi frowns.

"...Happiness, Khinashi?"

"What? It is a riddle, no? You are alive, you are happy. You are dead, you are not. Right?"

"I don't really get that but even if I did, this is a place where killers hang out, I don't think it would be that...happy."

"You can try too if you think you have a better idea."

J'shabi walks up to the door.

"What is the feeling of life?"

"Pain, my brother." J'shabi says.

"You are not worthy."

"This won't work, we're wasting our time." J'shabi says out of frustration.

"No, that was good! This one thinks you are on the right track. That is how an killer would think."

"Excuse me?"

"This one did not mean it like that...Khinashi has an idea, an alteration of your guess."

"We should just go back and find some other way to help him, we'll be too late if we just stay here talking to a door."

"One more try."

This one steps forward again to trigger the door's magical detection system.

"What is the feeling of life?"

"Suffering, my brother."

"Welcome home."

Khinashi smiles as the door glows and slides down, revealing a cavern within. Then she remembers that the people inside are merciless killers who might not take kindly to our presence. If they do not, then at least the others will be safe. Khinashi offered to go in alone earlier, but J'shabi would not have that.

This one shares one last look at J'shabi, and then we walk in.

The stone hallways seem to be built to make every footstep we take echo, it is no doubt they hear us and have assembled and prepared for anything. Our sounds can probably tell a lot about us, that there are two of us, for one, and no threat to them hopefully...

This one considers calling out a peaceful greeting in case of otherwise, but decides against it. It may lessen the chance that they will help us if we appear weak in front of them. They are not the type to help someone without payment, and we cannot pay them. We must simply talk in their terms to convince them.

Ahead is a wider chamber, and as expected, several of them stand ready and armed prepared for us. This one notices a few smirks as they must realize we are simple unarmed teenagers.

"Again? I told you the phrase was too easy! This is the third time this has happened the past few decades, we really need to change it." One of the members speaks up, an extremely pale Breton man. Khinashi scans the room and notices a few Khajiit. A Cathay, a Suthay-raht, and a Dagi-raht. There is also a Dunmer, Bosmer and Imperial. If any of them are Dar'nari, this one would guess it is the Dagi-raht.

"Well?" The Dunmer woman speaks up.

"We know of someone you may be looking for."

* * *

Dagi reaches the top and knows that Dazlah will soon follow. He is too quick to hit him with arrows during his climb, and so Dagi considers other alternatives.

"All your friends are dead! So why do you not just go and join them, hmm? It would not take long!" Dazlah shouts, confirming his presence.

"No, you lie!"

This one looks for something he could push over to knock Dazlah down. Something big, too big for him to move out of the way in time.

"Dazlah killed them himself! One by one he heard their screams as they died and he smiled! Khinazo the Tojay, J'shala the Cathay, Smallclaws the Senche, the Pahmar twins, and...the other ones too!"

Dagi is not sure if Dazlah meant to distract him or if he really knew nothing of his targets. This one did not let it stop him for a moment, and pushed over a long bench off the balcony walls and watched as it fell toward Dazlah.

The moment of confusion from seeing the object fall toward him was enough to ensure it hit him. He lost grip from the wall immediately and fell toward the pit of chaos.

Unfortunately he caught hold of a lower balcony just before the bottom and swung down to dodge the bench as it smashed into the ground. At least it bought him time to think.

Inside the Inn itself were civilians seeking shelter from the chaos, if Dagi entered he would put them at the risk of death from Dazlah, and so decided against it. Dagi could not climb down for the same reason as before, but the closest buildings were too far a drop, and the others too far a jump. Closer still but yet out of reach is a tall tree, much like the one inside the Inn.

Dagi runs to the other end of the rope and pulls it up, cutting the end of the rope and a length enough to be useful to him. After fashioning a makeshift grapple lasso, this one throws it over the tree and tugs on it as he jumps off, swinging over to the nearest building.

The vantage point from here allows Dagi to take the offensive for once, in a relatively calm situation, while Dazlah is unaware of where he went.

Except the arrows miss and hit the walls uselessly, and they once more betray Dagi's location, bringing Dazlah back on the track to pursue him.

This one curses to himself. Dagi is usually a good shot at this distance, but the spur of the moment and the situation make his arms shake and become unreliable.

Dagi lowers his bow and looks for where to run next, but all of the nearby buildings are too far to drop down. As Dazlah continues his way here, this one loses more time to climb. Dagi looks over the edge for any means of descent, but then feels the entire building shake as something crashes into it. This one is toppled over the edge and falls, dropping his bow in the process. Dagi falls hard on his left arm, breaking it, as it broke his fall, but the pain as a whole keeps him from rising.

Dazlah descends in front of him, and, realizing the circumstances, lowers his bow as he walks forward. Dagi tries to roll away to safety, but cannot feel his legs.

"Dazlah took much pleasure in taking your father's life. His screams were music to his ears, and this one is sure yours will be too."

Seeing Dazlah say those words scared him more than the one who said them could have ever hoped, for the beginning sounded so similar to something Dagi had thought earlier, about Dazlah. This one wonders what might have brought Dazlah to his path in life, and how close Dagi may have been to following it.

To hunt another's life because one was lost, is to throw your own away. Wise words Mother once said. Words Dagi did not take heed of.

Dagi closes his eyes, not wanting to witness his own death, thinking that sight would be one he would take to his grave. He felt the twang and whistle of an arrow, yet Dagi felt no pain, and wondered if it was already over. He opened his eyes to see Dazlah laying on the ground still holding his blades ready to strike, still holding his mouth open as if he were in the middle of speaking. His body was stiff and had a green hue, as if he were turned to stone right where he stood. An arrow stuck out of his back.

This one followed the path it would have took and found another Dagi-raht approaching, wearing armour Dagi is sure he has seen before but cannot recall where. She approached directly and did not seem to care of Dagi's presence. She merely lifted up the still paralyzed body of Dazlah and began placing him in a bag.

"What? What did you do? Who are you? Why did you save this one?"

The Dagi-raht turns around confused.

"Oh, you are still alive. This one is nobody, a simple Khajiit. Not one you want to know. Dazlah here could tell you why, if he could speak."

"No! Dar'nari, please! Do not kill this one, he is sorry! It was a mistake! Let Dazlah go!"

"Shush Dazlah, or Dar'nari will cut your tongue off first."

She pauses, lost in thought. "That is a shame, this one was hoping the poison would be complete this time."

"Dazlah still lives?"

"Oh yes, much to his dismay this one will ensure. He has caused Dar'nari much pain, and this one will repay that many times over. Only when he begs for death will this one finally reward him with it."

There was an eerily calm way she said that. Dagi is not sure if this is good news to him.

"Hmm...You know, you do look familiar. Does Dar'nari know you?"

"This one has never seen nor heard of you before. Perhaps you mistake this one for someone else?"

"Hmm, maybe...Yes, you're too young, too masculine, and too...alive, to be her. Yet your fur does look familiar."

"This one looks much like his Mother, perhaps that is whom you speak of?"

"Ah, that would explain it, yes, that could be."

"You knew her, then? You were friends?"

"Oh, no. Certainly not. Acquaintances really, if you can call it that. We only met once."

"When was that?"

Dar'nari paused for a moment, if considering whether to respond. She decided not to and merely laughed, jumping down with the bag carrying Dazlah's body. Dagi let his eyes follow her and noticed the noise of the fighting was dying down, and considered if that might just be him losing consciousness from the pain.

But it might not just be that. In the distance he sees a Senche-raht that he recognizes from the Jah'ishir. Zan'ir. On his back stands La'zanja and Ja'skar, the heirs of the tribes, and Ma'isha, Kishari's apprentice. They seem to be carrying people to the rooftops to bring them to safety, and shouting words this one cannot hear. Perhaps we did not fail completely after all.

* * *

"I saw his tail twitch! I think he's waking up!"

"If he was not already waking up, he will have now from your shouting, J'shabi."

"Sorry, it's just...I wasn't sure if he was going to wake up."

"Did you doubt this one's healing magic?"

"Do you really want me to answer that?"

This one opened his eyes and felt the comfort of a bed, and the walls around him spoke that he was in the Khajepako palace.

Many faces stood before him, staring expectantly, smiling. It would be quite creepy really if Dagi did not recognize them. He is more surprised and confused, for he thought the riot had happened, and yet here stand all of his friends that came with him to Corinthe, as well as Ja'skar, La'zanja, and Ja'khan.

The light coming in from outside tells him that it is morning, or close to noon. The lack of screams and shouting and fighting tells him that much must have happened after he fell unconscious.

"Cousin! So you truly are awake now, it is good to see you! It has been too long. " Ja'skar says.

"This one wonders...He is cousin to us both, does that make us related?" La'zanja speaks, in a tone this one does not remember her for possessing.

"Ja'skar hopes not. That may complicate things, no?"

"You have grown much since we last saw you, Ma'jizad...Or would that be just Jizad now? Ja'jizad? Hehe, maybe Dro'jizad? Too soon."

"Actually, this one goes by 'Dagi' now, La'zanja, but it is good to see you too."

"'Dagi'? You go by the name of your form? That is silly. La'zanja will call you Jizad, and you will just have to deal with it."

This one notices confused and surprised looks on Khinashi and J'shabi's faces.

"Wait, Dagi...You are Jizad? That means your parents are...Were..." J'shabi says, but does not finish.

"Khazi and Kherim?" Khinashi finishes, her curiosity overtaking her politeness.

"Yes. This one will not hide that. So you have heard of them, then."

"A lot, Dagi...Good things, though, they sound like they were great people." J'shabi says.

"So wait...You mean to say you call Jizad your friend, but you did not even know his name? Hmph. Some friends you are."

"So what happened?" This one interrupts La'zanja. "All of you are here, but the riot..."

Ja'skar frowns, but steps up to speak.

"Yes, it happened, as you are aware of already. Some parts of Corinthe were totally destroyed from the fighting, and the whole city would have been in rubble if not for..."

Ja'skar looks down, as if embarrassed. La'zanja speaks up for him.

"If not for Ja'skar saving La'zanja's Father from his own and telling him off! You should have seen it, La'zanja did not think he was capable of such language and fighting skill."

"Neither did Ja'skar. Do not forget it was you and Zan'ir who rescued his Khajepako clan-mates from this palace while it was on fire. Ja'skar's home would have been burned to the ground had you not put it out."

"It is a good thing the Inn had such a large supply of water. Even moreso that Zan'ir was able to pick it up."

"Yes." Ja'skar sighs. "Yet perhaps it would not have come to this if..." Ja'skar looks over to Khinashi. "Once again, this one is sorry for having uh, tried to kill you, Khinashi..."

La'zanja tuts. "And once again you have nothing to apologize for Ja'skar, you did not know. You trying to kill her was perfectly justified! Do not apologize for that."

"Then Ja'skar is not sorry for trying to kill you...he is sorry for not knowing there was not a good reason to kill you."

"Well, you are improving at least, Ja'skar."

"Fusozay Ja'skar, this one understands. Khinashi does not think she would have believed her either given the circumstances...But...Khinashi must say, it is quite interesting how history repeats itself. This is not the first time Corinthe was saved from destruction by your families making peace in the midst of battle."

"Hmph. Do not expect any apology from this one, Ja'khan regrets nothing."

"Oh shut up Ja'khan," Ja'skar says. "are you still sore over losing to J'shabi and Ma'krin? Your complaining is getting tiresome. Go back to your corner and cry over your wounded pride alone."

"This one did not-!" Ja'khan shouts, but decides better of it and walks out of the room. As he does, Dagi can see La'vani stride in, which makes Ma'ketra growl. They begin signing to each other words this one cannot understand.

"So the riot is over...But what of Dazlah?" This one changes the topic.

"I don't think he'll be a problem anymore, Dagi. We saw Dar'nari carrying him, when she returned to the Dark Brotherhood sanctuary. When we talked to her, it seemed like she had an extreme vendetta against him. She won't be letting him get away, if he's even alive anymore."

"Dark Brotherhood? What? And you talked to her?"

"Yeah, well Khinashi had the brilliant idea to go and ask them to kill Dazlah and save you. Somehow it worked, except they wouldn't let us leave."

"This one can still not believe how we got out of there...None of them knew anything of magic, so Khinashi offered to fix their door for them so it would not be so easy to bypass in exchange for our freedom. They tricked us, they only let Khinashi leave, and would have forced J'shabi to become a thrall for their vampire. So Khinashi tricked them back by changing the door so it would ask the question from both sides, and changed the answer to something they would never guess, and we snuck out. So they're locked in there now unless they can guess it."

"So the rumours were true about Ja'nari and that door." La'zanja says.

Dagi hears footsteps racing down the hallway and sees Ma'isha join the assembly, her face looked wet from tears, but her face brightens upon seeing this one.

"Dagi! You are awake! We were so worried..."

"Yes, this one is awake, and alive. It is good to see the same is the case for you. This one guesses you have told everyone about-"

"Yes, we know Jizad. That is kind of why your friends here are alive still?" La'zanja says as if it were obvious.

"That is what Ma'isha came here for actually. Father-er...well...the guard captain wants to speak to you and your friends about that. About what to do with Ra-Zara'chi."

"Then let us not keep him waiting." Dagi says, leaning up to get out of bed.

"Dagi, you're still hurt. You should rest awhile, we can handle this." J'shabi says, pushing this one back.

"No. This one has stayed hidden for too long, it is time Dagi...Jizad, walks in the open. This is where he was born, and he is tired of hiding from it."


	13. Act 1 Epilogue: New Moons and Horizons

**Act 1 Epilogue: New Moons and Horizons**

This one approaches the jailhouse with all of her friends behind her, and takes note that it is around the same time of day that we arrived here yesterday. So much has changed in a day, and can be seen on every face in the town, both good and bad.

"Back so soon? Roger would have thought you had enough of this jail for a lifetime, considering how close you were to being in it for the rest of your life."

"We are here to talk to Tarel at-taneth, he requested to see us."

"Ah, very well. Move right along, then, this one will not keep you."

As Khinashi moves forward, Keshna leans over and taps her shoulder.

"Keshna knew from the start that you were all innocent, but Roger there...he would not listen."

This one rolled her eyes and continued onward. The jail was not much different, and it felt good to be walking in it without having to be in some disguise or worry about anything. Tarel was sitting at his desk as usual, and upon seeing us walk in he stood up and bowed respectfully. Then he stood looking unsure of what to say, with his mouth hanging open.

"I'm sorry." He said at last, and then taking in a deep breath of air.

J'shabi whispers 'fourteen' in Khinashi's ear and this one chuckles, remembering she said she would keep track of how many times we heard that today.

"There is no need for that. We are all well aware already. Surely that is not what you called us here to talk about?"

"You're right, it isn't. Still I thought it should be said, I just can't get over how things could have gone differently. I just wish we would have listened! Maybe then my wife would still be alive."

None of us responded, letting the man grieve for a moment. This one noticed Dagi looked beridden with guilt. He must blame himself, although Khinashi is sure he did all he could, Dazlah must have just been one step ahead.

"Sorry, I just...There's a time and place for that and it's not here nor now I know." Tarel sighs and turns away before continuing.

"From what Ma'isha has told me, you came here seeking help against the false Mane Ra-Zara'chi. I aim to give you all of the help I can, now that we know the truth, but I'm afraid it might not be the help you were expecting."

"What do you mean?"

"Ra-Zara'chi has betrayed everyone in Elsweyr, and worse, only you and those you've spoken to and who've believed you thus far will know. He must, and he will be taken down from power- of that I assure you. I will do all that is within my power to do so."

"But?"

"But it will take time."

"But we cannot just let-!"

"Listen, I knew you weren't going to like it, and I fully understand that you want to take the fight to him now, but that's just not possible. Only those of us now in Corinthe, you, and in Portneu know of his treachery. To everyone else they would see a Rid-Rawl'vah, and if we marched into Torval they would see a rebellion. All of Elsweyr would be on his side, and almost all of them innocent. Even if we succeeded, too many would die that didn't need to, I'm sure you can understand that."

"Yes..."

"On top of that, we're in no shape right now to do anything. You may have done your best to prevent the riot but it still happened. Many died. My wife, Kishari died. The people will need some time to adjust without a Clan Mother, until Ma'isha can take that place. We need to recover before we can do anything else. Furthermore, I'm starting to think...No, nevermind."

"What is it? What do you think?"

"I'm not a man taken to fancy but I'm also not one to believe in coincidences. Maybe it's just Kishari rubbing off on me, now that she's gone, but I think...I think this strange phase with the moons might have something to do with Ra-Zara'chi. Before it seemed like just a natural event, and anyone who said otherwise had too much Moon Sugar. Maybe I have and I just don't realize it, I just don't know..."

"You think the Moons may really be gone?"

"No, I don't know...How is that even possible? What would that even do-what would it mean? But then I remember those crazy Khajiit yesterday. They were going on about the Renrija Krin and claiming they knew how to bring them back. They made them seem so sure that they were actually gone in the first place, and now it turns out the Krin were working with the assassin tracking you down, they would have been hired by Ra-Zara'chi."

"Maybe the Renrija Krin were the others who were at Torval? There were many others besides Dazlah and Rajirr."

"Maybe. But we don't know anything yet, it could still just be a phase, but every day without the moons makes me wonder...and I won't be the only one who's wondering. We'll just have to see what happens in the next few days, that's all we can do. It's not safe to assume anything...I've learned that now."

"What about us? What will we do?"

"That's actually the biggest reason I needed to talk to you all. It's clear now anyone who knows the truth will be at risk of being killed off. If we're even to begin spreading the word about the truth we'll have to do so quietly. Problem is, all of you are being hunted down and every other city in Elsweyr will learn of you soon if they don't already know. You saw how close it came to us turning you over to him, you might not be so lucky next time. On the other hand, if we keep you here, that puts our own city at risk, they might find out we know, and employ other tactics."

"So what are you saying, exactly?"

"Elsweyr isn't safe for you right now. I've prepared a transport to take all of you to Cyrodiil."

Khinashi is not sure her ears heard correctly.

"What?" J'shabi shouts. "You can't do that! You can't just make us stay out of this, this is our fight too!"

"I have no intention of keeping you uninvolved, I'm not foolish enough to try. You may be young and inexperienced but together you've proven you can make a difference, and you're brave. Not many would have stayed in Corinthe knowing most of them would kill you if they knew who you were, yet you all stayed and tried to stop something that didn't even concern your own safety. You could have left and saved yourselves but you didn't. Your methods are questionable and, honestly, a bit strange, but I can't deny you had a positive effect."

"But how can we do anything to help if we're not even in Elsweyr?"

"It's not wise to rush into battle unprepared. Like I said it will take some time, months, maybe, before we can even think about standing against Ra-Zara'chi. Use this time to train or travel and see the world. I'll send word to you when we're ready to take the next step, and by then, maybe you'll be more than just an unorganized group of kids, and you can take a bigger role into bringing Ra-Zara'chi to justice."

"So there is no chance of us talking you out of this?"

"No, I already paid for your passage. Trust me, the world outside isn't so bad, you might like it. Now, you'll be leaving in a few hours- it has to be this soon because people from Torval will be arriving soon to collect you. The riot will explain how you escaped, but if you're actually here, things would get...complicated. Take this time to enjoy the city, it will be the last you get to stop and see of Elsweyr for awhile. I'm sorry that this is the only immediate help I can give, but Ra-Zara'chi will be stopped, of that you can be sure."

We all nodded and made our way back to the streets of Corinthe. It is a shame we will not be able to see much of the city before we leave...but then, we did, did we not? We learned much about the tribes, the people here, its history. We got to explore parts of the town common tourists would not have been able to. Most of all we made a difference, we had a hand in stopping a riot that could have destroyed the city and helped unite the two tribes once again. Is this what it is like to be an adventurer?

Soon we will be on our own, around people who do not know us again, but we will be free to explore the world just as Khinashi has always wanted.

And if the Moons really are gone, then Khinashi will find out how. In the wide land of Tamriel, there must be someone or some place that could help us, and others will surely be trying to figure it out. It must have something to do with Ra-Zara'chi, and perhaps our information could help those smarter than us come to a conclusion. If it is possible to make them disappear, it must be possible to bring them back.

But if they are gone, what does that mean? For Khajiit, for Elsweyr, for all of Tamriel? Without the moons, Khinashi fears the consequences could herald a coming darkness for us all.

* * *

 **And so ends Act 1 of 4 of Living Under Void Nights, and the story of Corinthe...**

 **Act 2 will be bringing the Void Nights mystery to the front line of the plot as the Pride seeks out various means to explain it whilst they journey outside of Elsweyr. Act 2 will begin about a week after the events of this epilogue, but the next chapter I release may not be what you expect, and will take place from a perspective not yet used in this story, and someone who isn't a part of the Pride of Portneu, and most won't even be in the present-time. It will focus on revelations, and why these events are taking place in the first place.**

 **I'll be taking a short break, which could be as little as a week or as long as a month, before starting to write the first chapter of act 2. I might also go back and rewrite a couple things I wasn't quite satisfied with, particularly two scenes in the previous chapter. Anyways, with this being a good point of closure for now, I'd still love to hear your thoughts on the story so far, and how it's coming along. :)**

Thanks, and may bright moons guide your paths...Because the same can't be said for these Khajiit anymore.


	14. Prologue: The Dark Side of the Moons

**Ah, it's nice to be back from break, and back to writing. I've been looking forward to this chapter for awhile now, perhaps you'll understand why. This chapter takes place a few years prior to the events of the story - when exactly, should become clear while you read it.**

* * *

 **Prologue: The Dark Side of the Moons**

J'zhar let his legs hang off of the central market bridge, and rested his head on his arms as he watched the sunset, while the trees around Torval turned gold in its presence. He would not have to worry about being trampled on, not at this point. It was getting late, and most are returning home for dinner, to be with their family for the remaining hours of the day. He should too, really, but for some reason he stayed, and waited a little longer, just as he has for the past two hours...

He sighed upon remembering that, and clenched his eyes shut from the glaring, blinding light. It was not the first time, and it will surely not be the last. Once more she has forgotten, or felt something else was more important. Whatever the case, it was too late for their plan now anyway, there was little point in remaining.

After several minutes of silence, he heard footsteps pressing on the hardwood bridge, which made his ears twitch. He opened his eyes only to close them after realizing the sun was directly in his view now. He could tell it was one of the Suthay or Tojay forms by the sound of their footsteps- naturally more quiet than those who walk on their heels.

J'zhar opened his eyes slowly, and noticed a large obstruction blocking the sun, in the form of a Suthay girl looking down at him with a curious and happy expression, ready at any moment to burst out laughing. A normal expression for her, really. Her tawny coloured, striped fur looked darker with the sun behind her.

"You know, your big head is a good shade against the sun. Do you think you could stay like that for awhile?"

Within a moment she jerked her head away, letting the rays blind him once more. J'zhar rolled to the side and pushed himself off of the ground.

"Rajhin's whiskers, Khinashi, you decided to finally show up after all. This one is more than a little surprised."

"Khinashi is sorry, she had to help Ma'ketra today. She had gotten into some trouble at the plantation, and had to stay to help Zalani clean up. If this one did not help her, she would have been there all night...She doubts Ma'ketra will be allowed in there again, Zalani was furious."

"That would have made a good distraction for our heist, no? It is a shame we did not take advantage of it."

"This one is sure we could think of some other way to distract her when we are ready for it."

"Which will not be today - It is too late. She will be returning home if she has not already." J'zhar said with a disappointed sigh.

"This one apologizes...Khinashi will try to not let it happen again."

J'zhar snorted incredulously.

"Hah, like you said last time? Or the time before that? We have been planning for this since a week ago, Khinashi, and every time something comes up, every time something else. First it was magic training, then it was recovering from magic training, and then – what was it again yesterday? Hmm?"

"Khinashi admits, yesterday was her fault. Father had returned from his trip to Corinthe, and this one wanted to hear about what happened there, and lost track of time. There was a big murder investigation, the sister of one of the cities two big tribes leader's-"

"Yes, yes, you told this one, it just did not seem worth remembering."

J'zhar folded his arms and shook his head, and Khinashi looked away in shame, fearing to meet his gaze.

"What will it be tomorrow? Hmm? Will it be raining and you will not want to be wet? Will you sprain a leg to get out of it? Have you already decided on what you are planning, so you can avoid telling him this is just something you do not want to do?"

Khinashi frowned at this, but then rose to meet his eyes and smiled.

"Khinashi said she would help you, and so she will. If this one did not want to, she would not have asked to help you with it, silly. This one has just been too busy lately."

"Yes, well it is starting to feel like something else..."

Something about what he said made him feel guilty, and regret his choice of words, and then embarrassment when he noticed Khinashi must have found it funny. He shrugged his shoulders and turned away. It was his turn to fear her gaze.

He was caught off guard, then, when she suddenly leapt forward and licked his muzzle.

Utter confusion was written over his face as he turned to Khinashi, who returned to her normal near-bursting laughter expression, and holding her hands behind her back.

"Um, did you just...lick this one?"

"Yes." Was all she said, still holding back a laugh.

"Why? What does that even mean?"

Khinashi opened her mouth, but then paused for a moment, seeming to change her mind on what to say.

"It means whatever you want it to mean, M'zhar."

"This one is not sure what he wants it to mean."

"Well then you should think about that and get back to Khinashi on it."

For a few more moments there was silence, and he relaxed a bit from his earlier tension. Then he laughed.

"You forget already, Khinashi? This one is J'zhar now, he is of age now to no longer go by M'zhar. As are you, if you wish. You could be J'nashi, or maybe Ja'shi?"

Khinashi rolled her eyes.

"You know this one cares not for honorifics. Not unless they mean something special - M'zhar or J'zhar, it merely means your age. You do not really earn your age. This one thinks Azhargo sounded better anyway."

"Hmm, you could be La'nashi, then? This one thinks you have earned that."

"Hah, call this one La'nashi and you will be on your own with this heist, Ja'khajiit. No, Khinashi will be Khinashi, until she earns a title worth wearing, if ever."

"What was that you did not want to be called? J'zhar apologizes, he does not have good hearing, you may have to repeat it, within ear shot."

J'zhar backed away and turned his ears to the side, waiting until Khinashi realized, before breaking out into a full sprint for the edge of Torval. It was never wise to leave the city into the rainforest after dark, and as it took about a half hour to reach his home overlooking the valley outside, this was as late as he could stay. At least their tag race would make his waiting not all for nothing.

J'zhar was naturally faster, as a Suthay-raht, but Khinashi was more agile, and so while he kept a steady distance ahead of her, at times she nearly broke the distance with her shortcuts. She skipped entire flights of stairs, hurdled over benches and railings - at times she seemed less interested in the race itself, than for turning it into an acrobatic performance.

So it was a foregone conclusion as he waited for her to catch up when he reached the bottom of the stairs leading out to the north path of town. She rolled after hitting the ground at the bottom, ignoring half of the stair's existence.

"Not bad, Khinashi, although you might have had a better chance at winning if you did not try to jump over every obstacle within your line of sight. This one was hoping you might be able to keep up with him, ah well."

"Not everything has to be a competition, you know. It can be for fun, too."

"Oh, but competition is fun, Khinashi. The only reason you could disagree, is because you are losing so badly you cannot see it."

"Well in that case, if everything is a competition, this one must be winning the magic-learning one we are having!"

"True, true, you have him there, but only because J'zhar is letting you win. It would lose its fun if he won everything, no?"

"Well then, we will just have to settle the score tomorrow when we break into the Clan Mother's house, huh? Whoever gets the least sweets has to give the other half!"

"That sounds fair enough, so long as you do not mind losing – there really is no other outcome."

"We will see about that!"

* * *

Around the same time the next day, J'zhar sat upon the central bridge - their meeting spot - once more. He watched as people passed through the market place, back to their houses. Once again she had not arrived at the time she said she would, and while there was still time yet, he was becoming doubtful.

He thought back to why he had suggested it in the first place: he enjoyed the thrill of stealing, the risks associated with it made the reward all the more fruitful, but it was the fun that drew him back for more. Being the son of the Mane's speaker meant he could afford most luxuries, so it was not for personal gain. Indeed, he would find breaking through several locks and sneaking past guards to steal a worthless item more compelling than looting a simple chest full of gold.

Perhaps that was why he chose the paranoid Clan Mother Zalani as their target, then. She kept a tight schedule and checked things religiously, the locks on her doors and security mechanisms befit the palace moreso than the two-story hut she lived in, like most did here. There were no guards to evade - at least not if they were successful - the challenge was more in leaving no trace, and being smart about it. It would be a good opportunity to teach her his skills in the art, and maybe not regret taking that path so much. His father knew, of course he knew, and judged him for it - but Khinashi did not, despite her not being a thief herself. She seemed more curious than resentful, and her own will to mischief helped forge a strong friendship over the years... Or so he thought at times, at others it felt weak, or non-existent, and this was one of those times.

Perhaps that was a side effect of really only having one friend, for J'zhar did not get along with others very well, not least of those being the rest of the House of Cats, who for the most part could not talk anyway. It surprised J'zhar how much time she spends with them - J'bar the Alfiq-raht, Nisha the Pahmar, or the twin Senches Ma'ketra and Ma'krin. None of them could speak words, and yet she would prefer their company over him, over her own kind, someone who could talk to her? It confused him at best – and at worst, he was envious, and this was one of those times.

The sound of footsteps broke him from his thoughts, only then making him realize it had been quiet for several minutes while he was thinking. There could still yet be time if they hurried, and so J'zhar wasted no time lifting up his head to see who approached, and to see if it was Khinashi.

He regretted looking so surprised, and hoped she would not have noticed it, but that thought lost a place in his mind as he noticed another approaching alongside her. Someone he had not seen before – she looked like a Bosmer from Valenwood, both in appearance and garb, and the uncertainty that was obvious in her every movement made it clear she was new here. It was hard to tell with elves for him, but she looked around his and Khinashi's age, if perhaps a little older judging by her height, but then that too was hard to tell with Bosmer in particular. J'zhar had not seen many, she might even be an Ohmes, but it was unusual for them to not tattoo their facial fur.

"J'zhar, Khinashi has someone she would like you to meet. Her name is Shabiyah, and she-"

"J'shabi," the newcomer corrected. "My...This one is called J'shabi."

Khinashi rolled her eyes at the comment.

"Well, J'shabi, then. She arrived in Torval today looking for Khinashi's father. She traveled here from Hammerfell all by herself! She will be living with Khinashi and the others at the House of Cats, and so this one is showing her around the city and teaching her of our culture, for she is new to these lands."

The frightened-looking Bosmer crossed her arms and dipped her head as a sign of respect, or tried to, incorrectly.

"Why do you mock us, Bosmer? Act and speak normally, do not pretend to be Khajiit. Some could take offense to that."

The girl visibly shifted at his words, she seemed extremely out of place, and ready at any moment to just run off, never to be seen again.

"Sorry! I...sorry-"

"She is not Bosmer, J'zhar - she is Ohmes, she is Khajiit like us!"

"She does not sound or look like most Ohmes."

"That is because she was not born here, and did not know much about us, she came here to learn, J'zhar. Do not be rude!"

J'zhar did not respond to this. He had nothing against the new Ohmes girl in particular, even if he did find her attempts to fit in as mockish. It was what she represented that annoyed him most. Her arrival here was no-doubt the reason for Khinashi's delay today, and as per usual with new arrivals, the following days would also be occupied as she introduced her to the rest of the city and our way of life. It would be a week at the least before she found time for the heist... unless he could convince her now.

"Ah, did you forget again of our plan for today Khinashi? Is that the fourth time now?"

"No..." Khinashi said, in a way that meant she would have preferred J'zhar not bring it up. The Ohmes spoke next.

"Oh, if you were busy, this one can just go back to your house, J'shabi does not want to be a burden. Sorry...This one did not mean-"

"Our house, it is your's too now, but no, J'shabi, you do not have to. It was nothing, it can wait." Khinashi directed the last three words toward J'zhar, with emphasis. "J'zhar, this one was hoping, maybe you could help Khinashi show J'shabi around a little bit before it gets too late? She is very curious to learn about the Two Moons Dance, and you know some of it, maybe you could teach her about it?"

J'zhar frowned and contemplated the idea, but could not help but feel a hint of betrayal, which made him feel bitter and spiteful. He stood up and turned away.

"Nah, J'zhar is too busy..." He said as he walked off toward home.

It did not take long for J'zhar to regret his words, or to feel that he may have acted childish, but he did not care enough to turn around. Instead, as he passed the Clan Mother's house, he figured he may as well pull off the sugar heist on his own, perhaps the thrill would clear his mind. It is not as if the situation will be any different later, anyway. Days to come, Khinashi will be busy with something else, and it will continue to be so, J'zhar felt he was always bound to be alone on his path, and that he should just get used to it.

* * *

J'zhar's chin smashed against the floor as he was pushed to the ground by the guards that brought him in. Afterward they unbound his wrists and left him there, leaving the main hall of his house.

He should feel thankful that his father waived his sentence in the Torval jail – he had no wish to spend any time there, he had heard the stories, as most have in the city, but all he could feel was betrayal.

There was still his father to endure, and his speeches alone were far worse than simply sitting in a cell. At least, they were at one point, J'zhar had learned to not care what he thinks, not anymore, and so when his Father approached him in the main hall of their palace, he did not run. J'zhar did not beg for forgiveness, or apologize. He was not afraid. He had been through this enough times to be able to recite what he would say before he could say it, or at least some of it.

At least, he thought so.

"So, not only are you a failure of a son, but even as a self-proclaimed thief, you cannot even get that right."

"Well, actually it was not J'zhar's fault he got caught...the new Ohmes girl had alerted Zalani while J'zhar was inside." J'zhar spat out the words. The Ohmes had ruined his day twice over already.

"Yes, Ra-Zara'chi heard the report. That does not make it any less your fault, you trusted her and she betrayed you."

"J'zhar never told her anything about it though, Father."

"And yet she knew?"

"Well, perhaps Khinashi told her..."

"Of course, then you trusted her and then she betrayed you."

It was not uncommon for Father to insult Khinashi or her family. It was no secret to anyone that he despised them, Jo'azha the Moon Hallowed in particular. Normally J'zhar would talk back or ignore his insults, but this time he was not sure what to think.

"You know how this one feels about you hanging around her, J'zhar - she is a bad influence to you. Remember that."

J'zhar had to snort at that, it was more likely the other way around.

"Yes Father, you make that quite clear, and quite often..."

"Yet you do not heed the advice."

"J'zhar never asked, or wanted advice, and if he did, he would not be asking you for advice concerning them."

J'zhar could tell what he would say next, and so he cut him off before he could.

"You only have contempt for the Moon Hallowed because he did not choose you to become Mane! Admit it, you let that blind you and grow hatred for him and his family, and you wish to share that hatred with J'zhar...but J'zhar does not see them as rivals."

"You shame this one by thinking his reasons are due to a petty political position. It is more than that, and that is not even a reason on its own!"

"Then perhaps you should make that more clear, Father, because that is what it looks like to J'zhar!"

His father's anger seemed to waver, and he was lost in deep thought. He turned away from J'zhar and took a few steps. J'zhar was not sure what was going to happen, he was expecting his father to lash out at him for demanding him to explain himself, like he usually did when he asked about him.

"This one and Jo'azha... it is not simply a matter of his choice so many years ago. While Ra-Zara'chi thinks he would have made a much better Mane, and it would surely have made things simpler...No, it is deeper than that. We have a different philosophical view on how certain problems in Elsweyr should be dealt with. Hmph, Jo'azha would not even consider it to be a problem..."

"What are you talking about Father? You are making no sense. What problem?"

Ra-Zara'chi's anger seemed to return to him. He turned around to face J'zhar, and did not look happy at being interrupted.

"What 'problem'? You know of what Ra-Zara'chi speaks, and yet you speak incredulously, you doubt him."

"Ah, you are speaking of the phases and our forms again..." J'zhar says with a sigh.

"The curse! How is it not a curse? Azurah has blinded you all into thinking it is a gift - and that is the worst part...we willingly subjugate ourselves to this demon in favour of our own demise, our own suffering!"

"This one does not see our forms as a curse, more or less an inconvenience, but it has its benefits too." J'zhar regretted bringing it up. His father could spend hours ranting over the moons.

"Jo'azha would agree with you, and yet there are cruelties that exist because of it, cruelties no Khajiit should have to burden. This one does not blame you for not seeing it- you are young, and have not yet seen the world. People try to hide it from you so you do not have to share the pain of knowing – but know this: It is not like what Jo'azha claims it to be, but much harsher...unnecessarily so."

"This one has grown up enough has he not? Perhaps he is old enough to know. Tell him, what is it like, hmm?" J'zhar asks humorously.

Ra-Zara'chi paced around the room silently for a few minutes before responding. Pondering on what to say. J'zhar's patience for him was wearing thin, by the time he finally spoke.

"What do you think of Elsweyr, J'zhar? Do you like this land? Do you like living here?"

"Well, we have never lived anywhere else, so he cannot really say. This one does not dislike it?"

"But you have the choice to leave if you wish. There is nothing stopping you from going anywhere in Tamriel, anywhere in the world."

"Okay...But how does that-"

"Because not all Khajiit have that choice. What do you think a group of Imperials would do, if they saw one of the Senche, or a pride of Pahmar? What would they do if they were to be walking around one of their cities in Cyrodiil?"

"This one does not know?"

"They would kill them. Or at best chase them out, they would not be allowed in the cities, and even outside of them, they would be hunted like animals, seen and treated as them, or at worst, monsters intent on slaying them. They would have no trial, no chance to explain themselves – not that they could be able to speak to do so. Even with one of our other kind to guide them, they would not be trusted. No, their only choice is to live in Elsweyr, they do not get the choice to travel the world."

"Well, that is unfortunate, but there are worse-"

"And even here, in their homeland, the only land they are allowed to live in, they cannot fully participate in society. Without the ability of speech they are reduced to a convoluted sign language that most do not even bother to learn – even amongst ourselves. They cannot go to markets and buy things, they cannot use tools without thumbs to use them. Their career choices are limited to functions capable within their form's limitations. They must live silently amongst most who they cannot speak to, finding what small enjoyment they can get out of what few things they are able to do."

"Hmm, this one supposes that is-"

"And when you have traveled with me outside of Torval, when we have visited small villages, have you ever noticed any of our larger forms amongst them? The Senche and the Senche-raht?"

"Now that you mention it, no. Is there a reason-"

"That is because there are none. In the poorer parts of Elsweyr, in villages that struggle to gather enough food for themselves, it would be impossible to sustain a Senche's demanding diet, one that requires a village's worth of food on its own. No, J'zhar, there are no Senche amongst them because when their children are born under that phase they must kill them, and that is considered the merciful choice. Selling them into slavery to feed the village is the other option. You must have wondered why Khajiit have become the second most enslaved race by the Dunmer fiends? They do not come and capture us here like they did the Argonians – no, Khajiit handed over their family members to them! They lived like cattle amongst them, J'zhar! Bred for more slaves, living a life of servitude, to which their own children would know no other! It is not as bad here in the south, where food is plentiful, but in the north...the nomadic tribes are not nomadic simply for the sake of it."

"Okay, Father, this one sees what you mean...you can stop-"

"And you fancy yourself a thief? Do you even know why most Khajiit take to thievery in the first place?"

"This one is not sure he wants to know..."

"What other path do you think those two-legged Khajiit, born and raised by those whom cannot speak – cannot teach them normal ways of society? They do not know how to read, or how to write! Some do not even learn to speak until much later. Their only option is to steal or kill to get by and support their families. They live outside of society, or leave Elsweyr to live a life of banditry amongst the wilds. That is why our race is so ill-begotten throughout the other lands, J'zhar!"

J'zhar could not find the will to speak, for he knew his father would interrupt him and continue anyway, until he felt he made his point.

"These and many more unspoken are the cruelties that truly exist, J'zhar, and only because of our curse. To accept that those cruelties exist and still see our state of being as anything less than a curse is to advocate them, and Ra-Zara'chi...Does. Not. Advocate them."

"J'zhar can see that, Father, this one does not think anyone could think otherwise."

"Hmph, and Jo'azha would claim to seek to mend our problems - these problems, but he is nothing but an idealist. He lacks the conviction to make any meaningful difference, and only proves the full extent of them in the process. This...House of Cats and similar approaches he takes are merely a bandage solution to a bleeding problem that deserves a more prominent and permanent path of action. This is something that Ra-Zara'chi has made it his life's goal to seek, and will not stop until he sees it done! It is true, the resources Ra-Zara'chi would have had as Mane would have allowed searching for a solution to be much simpler, but Ra-Zara'chi will find a way regardless, of that you can be sure...Now tell me, son, is that wrong? Is Ra-Zara'chi wrong to wish to stop these cruelties? To break our curse?"

J'zhar thought long before answering his question. At first he was scared, Father's voice was full of anger, and clearly very passionate about what he speaks. J'zhar must respect him for that much. It is certainly not the first time he has ranted about the moons, Azurah, or our forms, and definitely not about Jo'azha, but to have it laid plain - in front of him - his reasons for such, made it more understandable for why he thinks this way. Even though J'zhar would still not go so far as to say it is a curse, it does show that it is not as fanciful as it is made out to be by most Khajiit who worship the moons.

"J'zhar does not think you are wrong, Father...perhaps just a little obsessed."

His father's anger left him completely, and he relaxed his shoulders and approached J'zhar.

"Perhaps you are right, J'zhar. Ra-Zara'chi is sorry, sometimes he forgets...It is just, it comes from personal experience, and that clouds his judgment sometimes."

"What do you mean, Father? You never say much about your past."

"And now will be no different. This one is sorry, but those secrets will go to his grave. Suffice to say, Ra-Zara'chi has seen the dark side of the moons more than most – enough to know we deserve to be free of them. Your mother's unnecessary sacrifice was the final act that pushed him over the edge."

"Sacrifice? What do you mean? You told this one she died in childbirth."

"And that was not a lie, but it was not the full truth. Perhaps it is time for you to know the rest."

J'zhar's father beckoned him out of the main hall, to a deck that overlooked the valley. The sight of the trees so far below, and the city of Torval within them was always a beautiful sight. In the summer seasons, J'zhar would often watch the rain and thunderstorms from here. Watching, over time, as the valley flooded, up close to the bridges upon which the city was situated. It would take some weeks before it got there, sometimes it never did, other times it risked going further. Now, approaching the closing months of the year, it was completely dry – or as dry as a rainforest could get.

"In the ancient days, thousands of years ago, when the first empire was expanding across Tamriel, Elsweyr – although not known as Elsweyr then, it was vastly divided – had an internal conflict. Outside influence was also expanding, and while Elsweyr never entered the empire officially, their cultures and way of life seeped into our lands. As all of the other races can talk, and walk on two feet, these cultural traits reflected that, and in a sense, uplifted the Khajiit who also did this. Before this time, Khajiiti culture was balanced, and there was little separating us from our four-legged brethren, but afterwards...they were seen as lesser forms."

"How does this have anything to do with how Mother died?"

"This one is getting to that, J'zhar...When they were seen as 'lesser forms', it was natural for some to wish their children would be of a two-legged form, and so they worked out a way to bypass how the phases dictate their form at birth, but at great risk to both the mother and the child, or children. This process became illegal following the rise of the Lunar Pride, and over time forgotten, but Dunmer slaver fiends reinvented it and to this day continue the practice when breeding Khajiiti slaves, to ensure they become Suthay-raht at birth. The Dunmer simply call it 'Moonbreeding'."

"This one is Suthay-raht..."

"Moonbreeding can be used to cause any form to be born, not just Suthay-raht. Anyway, those who study the phases and patterns are able to discern a rough idea of what phase an unborn Khajiit will be born under, the amount of available information determining the accuracy. Your mother and this one, we sought out these people, and the result was...not what we wanted to hear."

"What was it?"

"The certainty of which form you would have become is not completely accurate, but it would have either been an Alfiq, an Alfiq-raht, a Senche-raht, or possibly an Ohmes. You would have been no more than a pet, or a mount to some Cathay to ride into battle, and even the best outcome would have resulted in you not even looking like either of us, but you would have been able to talk at least. We did not want our child to live a restricted life, and so we sought other avenues."

"And you learned of the moonbreeding practice?"

"Yes. When we did, Ra-Zara'chi immediately rejected the idea, to lose your mother, Vajira...and maybe you as well...No, this one would have learned to live with an Alfiq son, or whatever you would have been. Your mother did not agree with him. Against all his wishes, she underwent the process regardless, while the moons lit the sky of the phase of the Suthay-raht, more than a month earlier than you would have been born. She took the risk for you, J'zhar, so that you might be able to live an unrestricted life, one of your own choosing, not one the moons chose for you...That is why she died."

J'zhar opened and closed his mouth, unable to think of how to respond. Tears drenched his cheeks as the realization that his mother quite literally gave her life for him to live as a Suthay-raht sank in. He was not sure what to think. He tried to imagine himself as an Alfiq, and having his mother sitting by him, and if he would be happy. Would he have even been here? Would he too have lived in the House of Cats, away from his parents? He would never be able to speak, or to walk on two legs, all of the things he is used to doing would be replaced by something else. He would have been a completely different person. He would barely fit the criteria for being a person...

J'zhar never felt pity for the four-legged before, he had imagined they lived happy lives as well, but if he were ever given a direct choice, to be a Suthay-raht or an Alfiq, the answer was obvious.

Was his father right, then? Are the moons a curse to be lifted? Are the multitude of forms just a suffering placed on Khajiit for Azurah's amusement? If the forms did not exist, his mother would not have had to sacrifice herself, and he would still be...what would he be? He would be the same as them, and in the end...that was all that mattered.

* * *

 **So, what do you think of all of this? I'd really love to hear, I'm glad to finally have brought in this aspect to the story. Also, I made a poll recently which you can find on my page, which asks which characters you'd be most interested in learning more about. :)**

I look forward to writing the next chapter soon, which will also be rather short, before things get back into the big picture. It'll be called "Anywhere But Elsweyr". Before that, I might make a blog about topics concerning problems within Elsweyr, as well as some other cultural things I've created, as I have a lot stuffed in my mind, but I'm not sure how much of it will make it into the story.

Oh, and how did you feel about my writing style for this chapter? I was experimenting with writing from a different perspective, which might make things a lot easier to read, or might not, or something inbetween. It would be good to know if it was an improvement or not from other chapters.


	15. Chapter 12: All Cats are Grey

**Well, it's not the chapter I was expecting would be next, but it's the next chapter nonetheless. I could have written this one at a later point, but since the prologue went in to Dar'Zhar-do's past, I was feeling in a Zhar-mood, so here's the first chapter that shows how Dar'Zhar-do's place in the main story will be brought about. The next one will be the 'Anywhere but Elsweyr' chapter I had mentioned before.**

 **Strangely, I kind of had a lot of writer's block for this one, even though it's rather short. I'm not sure why, hopefully it didn't negatively effect it at all, but I'd like to know if it did.**

* * *

 **Chapter 12: All Cats are Grey**

She was dead. She had to be. Dar'Zhar-do could not think of any way they would have managed to survive with the entire Corinthe guard force after them. He did not care much for most of them, especially not the Ohmes, but he would never wish them dead. Khinashi was his friend once, he remembered that, perhaps he has always. He could not hurt her let alone kill her like his father ordered...but then he did kill her. He helped track them down, drew pictures of them so they would be found. He was just as responsible as Dazlah and the Krin themselves. Dar'Zhar-do is a murderer.

There was hope, once, when news returned by Pahmar courier that something was wrong with the posters. His father immediately blamed him, purposely sabotaging the depictions so they could escape. For once, that was one offense Dar'Zhar-do was not responsible for, but he had wished he was, for it would mean he would have at least tried to help. He should have lied and said he did, for it would have at least saved the prisoners from the terrible things done to them in the following interrogation.

It was not enough- could not be enough. Dar'Zhar-do had kept a spare copy for himself, and the fastest Pahmar courier available was sent to bring it back. They would have arrived in Corinthe the same day they left, without stops. That was a few days ago.

Since then Dar'Zhar-do has lost the will to do anything much of anything. He could not do sword-training with Rajirr like his father asked, he could not eat, and during what little sleep he did manage to get, memories of his past would return to haunt him. It was as if his subconscious was reminding him of what he lost- what he was responsible for destroying. All of the barriers he built for himself have become too heavy to hold, and so he no longer tried to hide how he feels. He simply no longer cared to hide it.

It did not feel like this before. Ever since his father told him about the harsh truth of the curse, he respected him. He looked up to him, and above all, he agreed with him. Now, seeing it all take place...Dar'Zhar-do was confused and unsure again. Killing his own twin brother, and impersonating him as the Mane...imprisoning innocent people, killing Jo'azha and hunting down his family... Those things did not feel right. Not at all. Did something change? Is this not what he had talked about those years ago? Or was he hiding the harsh truth of his own plan, alike he felt the truth of the curse was kept from him? Ever since he returned from Dune, he has seemed different- more prone to his fits of anger, and then sadistic and cruel at times, which was unlike him before, and it has only gotten worse after the murder. Perhaps, being so close to achieving his goal, he too no longer cares to hide his true feelings. Perhaps Dar'Zhar-do never really knew his father until then. Maybe he never knew himself.

"A new era for our people is dawning, son, look alive and cherish these times! What we do now will pave the course of Khajiit life for generations to come!"

"Yes father..."

He had almost forgotten he was still sitting next to him at the dinner table, and that he was supposed to be eating. Dar'Zhar-do does not know how long he has been talking, if it was to him or what he was saying at all. He did not care, there was really nothing he could say that would make him feel better. It was simply much easier to nod his head and act like he was paying any attention to him.

"Generations that will be able to go anywhere, do anything, and talk to anyone! Amongst much more...When they realize that, they will understand - You will understand! Those who fail to realize- those who would oppose this gift will be given no mercy, son. A necessary evil to achieve a much greater good. Do not pity them, but if you must, then take solace in knowing they will be with the moons they so overly covet."

"Yes father..."

"And know that when they look back down in decades to come, they will see how foolish they were to think that such a chaotic society could ever succeed at much. They will learn eventually, even if it is not in life. We will prove it to them! Your misguided sympathy will pass, do not worry. It will take time, but you will learn it is for the best to let it go."

"Yes father..."

Ra-zara'chi sighed, and Dar'Zhar-do continued to stare vacantly at nothing.

"You are not really listening to this one, are you?"

The doors to the dinner hall cracked open, and one of his father's Ohmes-raht advisors approached the two Khajiit with rising confusion. Dar'Zhar-do did not look up to see him.

"Yes fath-"

Dar'Zhar-do felt the swift pain of a staff being swung into his stomach, by the only remaining hand his father possessed. He dropped to the ground from his chair, winded from the blow.

The Ohmes-raht must have been out of ear-shot to hear Dar'Zhar-do's low-murmuring tone, and he must have thought better than to ask what might have warranted such an attack.

"Mane Rid-Rawl'vah...Why do you still wear your ceremonial headdress? In your own home, alone, surely it makes it difficult to move around?"

"Surely you did not come to speak to him to ask such an impertinent question. State your business."

"Ah, yes...This one's apologies...News has arrived from Corinthe, Mane. Unfortunately, the assassins have escaped capture before our team arrived to retrieve them. There was a riot in the city at the time, and during the confusion, they managed to slip away. There is more: The bounty squad you sent after them have perished, presumably from the riot itself, although there is a report that a Khajiit matching agent Dazlah's description was seen being carried off a female Dagi or Dagi-raht. Their trail was lost not far outside of the city however, the team was unable to pursue a rescue attempt."

Ra-Zara'chi growled from anger and frustration.

"Do we know where they might have fled? A direction, sightings, anything?"

"Unfortunately not. The riot caused quite a confusion, and threatened to engulf the whole city in its destruction before a group of Khajiit managed to cease the hostilities causing them. During that time, the assassins were the last thing on their minds. This one is sorry, Mane, but they could well be out of Elsweyr by now if they moved fast."

Dar'Zhar-do finally comprehended the words the advisor was saying, and he felt more alive than he had felt for nearly a week. He pulled himself up off of the ground, and found it difficult to hide his appreciation for the news. Dar'Zhar-do felt his father's eyes upon him, studying him, and he knew he could tell as well. The advisor just looked confused.

"They will not be out of our grasp for long. We must send scouts to locate them, even if they have left Elsweyr, we will not lose track of-!"

"Umm, Mane Rid-rawl'vah?"

"What?"

"Well, if this one might suggest...Perhaps it is unnecessary to send scouts after them? Without the moons, Elsweyr is having problems of its own, and could use more resources to keep things under control. We should not spread them too thinly. After all, all of Elsweyr will know about the assassins by now, and so if they are still here, we will hear word of their capture, or at least sightings soon. If they have left Elsweyr...then it is only a matter of time before they meet their fate or are forced to return. Your brother's betrayal was a surprise to us all, but he was right on some things. The people of Cyrodiil, and much moreso the other provinces, will not take kindly to our more beast-like forms, half of which are amongst them. They will be seen as trespassers at best, and at worst...Well, they will not be a problem for Elsweyr anymore."

Dar'Zhar-do saw the truth in the advisor's words, but still, at least it could convince Father not to send more people after them.

"Hmm...Very well. In the meantime, prepare a public execution for tomorrow afternoon. It is time we show what happens to traitors. The ones in the cell have overstayed their welcome."

"Rid-rawl'vah? You are sure? Zalani and Tatanja are still very popular figures amongst Torval, and some still question their involvement in the assassination attempt. You have not ordered anyone's execution in many years, it might not be wise to-"

"They have already proven their guilt as traitors by helping the others escape Corinthe. Even behind bars they have shown they can disrupt things. We cannot allow them the chance to do so any further."

"Very well, Mane. This one will have it arranged. It still does not seem like a good idea, but-"

"Rid-rawl'vah has spoken."

The Ohmes-raht nodded silently and scurried off through the doors he entered.

"Leave." Was all Ra-Zara'chi said to his son, but in such a tone that meant it was not up for debate, and so Dar'Zhar-do left.

As he closed the doors behind him, he could almost not believe the words he had heard. His father was about to have four of the most influential people in the city killed because they took offense to the idea that his father killed his own brother and was impersonating him, and were willing to do something about it. Dar'Zhar-do did not like his father's actions up to this point, but this...this was too far.

At first Dar'Zhar-do felt sad, and was about to return to his reclusive self he had been only minutes ago, but it soon turned to anger. Being sad meant you knew something was going to happen that you did not like. Anger meant you were willing to do something about it.

* * *

Dar'Zhar-do went over the plan in his head several times more, but he could not figure out a way to do it by himself. His father no doubt suspected he might try something, and so doubled the watch for their cells at all times. They have orders not to let anyone see the prisoners, and more specifically, if they see Dar'Zhar-do anywhere near their cell, to report him to Ra-Zara'chi.

That meant Zhar could not be seen by them at all, but they are the only ones who have the key to their cells. He considered the idea of picking it, but he has seen those locks, it would take too long.

Distracting them would be a necessity as well. Even if he managed to somehow slip past them unnoticed and steal their keys, the prisoners would not be able to do the same. They would have the entire guard force down on them within minutes. Dar'Zhar-do would also be known to be responsible for their escape. It would be him sitting in a cell next, in that case.

It was a two-cat job, no matter which way he looked at it, and there is no one he could trust with it. If people knew the truth that the Mane was actually Ra-Zara'chi, then of course...but either they would not believe him, or the entirety of Torval would rise up against his father and kill him. Dar'Zhar-do does not agree with his father's methods, but he is his father nonetheless, and he is right about their curse, he wants to help Elsweyr...right? He is simply misguided, and is making a mistake. Dar'Zhar-do does this only to help his father, and because he does not believe they need to die.

But without anyone to help him, they just might.

Dar'Zhar-do was surprised when he heard the knocking on his door. He had been so lost in thought he did not hear them climb the stairs or walk the hall. Was his father sending someone to keep watch on him even now?

"Yes? What is it?"

"You got a moment? I need to talk to you. It's important."

It was Rajirr's voice, one of his father's two henchcats who do jobs for him that others could not. Apparently his latest task was to train him, but it seems obvious his father's real intention was to try and make him 'understand' the good of his efforts. It was funny listening to him talk about it, because it was clear he did not really care at all about the situation. He was just hired help, and it showed.

"Sure, whatever. Just hurry up, this one is busy."

"I take it you heard already about what happened at Corinthe?"

Zhar nodded, confused, while he thought about how that had anything to do with him needing to talk to him.

"Ah, hmm...Oh, sorry to hear about what happened to your friend, but this one guesses it happens to the best of us, no?"

Rajirr scoffed at his words.

"Look, I'm not Ra-Zara'chi, you don't need to put on any act around me. It's Dazlah, no one likes him, he's an idiot at the best of times, and honestly I'm not surprised he managed to muck up the job."

"So why are you telling Dar'Zhar-do this, hmm?"

"Well, It is about Dazlah. In the report, they said something about him being captured and taken away from the city by some Dagi-raht girl?"

"Perhaps. To be honest this one was a bit more interested in the other events they were talking about..."

"Was the name 'Dar'nari' ever mentioned?"

"No? This one does not think so, why? Did you not hear the same thing as this one?"

"Yeah...It's just...I think that might be who captured him, and if it is..."

Rajirr stopped mid-sentence and looked over Dar'Zhar-do, as if judging something about him.

"Look, I know you're not all into your dad's big plan, not like some of the others in-the-know are here. Can I trust you to keep a secret from him?"

"That all depends on what it is really. This one is just confused as to why any of this should concern Dar'Zhar-do..."

"Dar'nari is the leader of the Dark Brotherhood sanctuary in Corinthe. She's been trying to track us down, but it's really been Dazlah she was after mostly, and if she got him...I need to break him out, but I can't do it myself."

"Wait...Are not you and Dazlah from the Dark Brotherhood? Why would someone else from your group want to capture you?"

"That's the thing. We're not exactly Dark Brotherhood assassins, at least, not anymore. Your dad hired us because he thought we were, but really...Well, uh, Dazlah overheard your father chanting the black sacrament one day – that's a ritual people do when they try to summon them. So he answered the summons himself, posing as one of them. He wanted to steal the job as a way to get back at the brotherhood and Dar'nari, and that's how we got in this whole situation working for him. If I'd have known just how much he was gonna have us do...Well, it's too late for regrets now."

"Hmph, this one doubts Dazlah could have heard any chanting from so far away, we do not exactly live inside the city. You came here for another purpose."

"Alright alright, so what if we were gonna loot the place before we heard him? You call yourself a thief too, you can't blame us for that. This place is loaded with stuff!"

"Fair enough. This one is guessing the brotherhood did not take kindly to you impersonating them?"

"What? No, well, I don't know. They probably don't even know yet if they ever will, your dad wasn't really doing the ritual right anyway, but that isn't the point. Dazlah got us kicked out of the brotherhood after he got Dar'nari mad at him awhile back, that's why we left. That was long before we showed up here."

"So let Dar'Zhar-do get this straight: You are coming to him to ask him for assistance in risking his life to free Dazlah from a group of professional assassins? Why should this one help you? You claim to have tried stealing from his home, lied to his father about who you are, and have failed at almost every job his father has given you so far. For all this one knows, Dazlah might even deserve his fate. He did not seem very nice while he was here, and Dar'nari...well, she is unknown to Dar'Zhar-do."

"I know I'm asking a lot, and you don't really have any reason to want to help him or me, but hear me out: No one deserves the fate he'll be put through if it's true Dar'nari has him. Look, I know I can't say much – I'm a killer. I steal and kill people for a living, but there's murderers and assassins, and then there's Dar'nari. Almost everyone has morals, an invisible line they don't cross, for some that line's further up than for others, but for Dar'nari...Dar'nari doesn't just kill...She enjoys killing. She brings people back to torture them, for no reason other than entertainment. She steals their souls with gems and sells them to mages, and sells their corpses to necromancers. If it's a Khajiit she skins them and sells their fur to the Fur Trader. Sometimes she keeps them alive and sells them off to slavery, and others she keeps as thralls for her vampiric associates. There's nothing she won't do and that's why Dazlah ticked her off. Even he had enough, so he ruined one of her operations. I don't know why he did it but she hated him for it ever since."

"Hmm, this one sees..."

"What she does to a victim any day is bad enough, but when she wants revenge...Even the rest of the brotherhood cringes. Dazlah may have been an idiot, and wasn't much better than Dar'nari herself, but as much as I hate to admit it, he was my friend, and he was right about her. I just can't sit and do nothing knowing what she'd do to him. That's the kind of stuff that haunts someone for the rest of their life. I don't want that."

"It sounds like he could already be dead then, no?"

"Maybe, that is a possibility, but her victims can sometimes last awhile if she wants it to, and well, she and Dazlah go way back, from their childhood. They were friends – more than friends, so that's just all the more reason she'd make it the longest, most painful experience for him, because in her eyes he betrayed her trust, and she never trusted anyone else."

Dar'Zhar-do thought over Rajirr's words. At first he was not really considering it, he had no obligation to help him, and Dazlah was sent to kill Khinashi, why would he want to help him? He could be sent after them again if he freed him. Then again, perhaps his father would simply dismiss him since he already failed twice.

That does not justify why he should risk his life to do so. No one deserves such a fate as Rajirr described but such things are a common occurrence around the world, no one can save them all, why save a murderer from their own fate when truly innocent people share the same? Who is to say the same would not happen to Dar'Zhar-do if he tried but failed to rescue him?

"Dar'Zhar-do apologizes, Rajirr, but that is something you must do alone, or ask someone else. It is just too risky for this one to get involved."

Rajirr looked disappointed, but nodded his head.

"Well, I can't. I've thought it over, but it's not something I can do alone. I can't really ask anyone else either or I risk your dad finding out, but alright. Dazlah will just have to face his fate I guess..."

Rajirr turned around and left the room. Dar'Zhar-do could not help but feel guilty, as if he was sentencing Dazlah to his fate, but he knew it was not his fight. He had his own rescue mission to plan. One that he still cannot figure out how to do...alone...

Dar'Zhar-do ran out of his room and called after Rajirr before he could go too far.

* * *

"I still don't get why you want to help them." Rajirr says,as he and Zhar walk through the empty bridges of Torval.

"You do not have to understand why, you just have to help him, that will be enough."

"Yeah yeah, I said I would, and I'm gonna. Just don't try and pull a fast one on me and walk out after this is all over. You're getting Dazlah out of the sanctuary after this."

Dar'Zhar-do was actually considering that. He was alright with Rajirr's plan for him to join the Dark Brotherhood temporarily to free Dazlah after this is all over...until it got to the point where he explained just how he would be recruited by the cold-blooded assassins. There is only one way to be contacted by the Dark Brotherhood properly...and that is to murder someone. To take a life in cold blood, either someone significant enough to attract their attention, or brutally enough. The mere thought that Dar'Zhar-do will have to kill someone in the near future...He had thought himself a murderer earlier, or just as guilty as one, but there is a big difference between causing someone's death, and taking it directly. He would do anything to get out of that.

But without Rajirr's help, four would die, and they were people he knew. He never really understood the Nord, and his interactions with Zalani and Jo'banja were never pleasant, but he knew Tatanja to some extent, and knew about her more from Khinashi.

"Yes, Rajirr, this one knows..." Zhar finally responds.

"They won't thank you for it, you know."

Dar'Zhar-do was amused by his words.

"What do you mean? Of course they will! This one will be saving them, why would they not thank him, hmm?"

"They won't see it like that. You're their most hated enemy's son. They won't trust you."

"You speak nonsense, Rajirr."

"Just be ready."

Dar'Zhar-do was still confused as to why he brought that up, but there was no time to think on it. They approached the wooden support tower that led down to the Torval jail, beneath the surface. Only tonight did Dar'Zhar-do realize just how dark it is without the moons hanging in the sky. Even as a Khajiit, in the areas where the trees above block the light of the stars, his vision was restricted in ways he was not used to.

They parted ways and nodded to each other, to indicate they understood the plan. Rajirr walked through the door of the tower to descend the inner stairs, but Dar'Zhar-do could not risk being spotted by any guards along the way, and so took to the outer bridge stairs not too far away that descended to the surface.

As the Suthay-raht met with the walls of the tower he could hear Rajirr and the attendant at the service desk talking.

"-you see a small diamond-encrusted moon-shaped earring around here by any chance? Pretty sure I dropped it outside a few minutes ago on my way back home, been looking all over for it."

"This one regrets he has not seen anything like that."

"Damn, well, that thing was extremely valuable, could go for thousands of gold, that's like what, a month of your pay probably? It'd be a shame if someone found it and kept it for themselves, but that's probably what happened. I looked all over except outside on the surface here, probably fell off the bridges up top, but I'm not about to go clawing around in the grass for it. Just thought I'd check here in case you found it, but now I'm headin' home."

"That is a...shame, no? Well, hopefully no one will find it until the morning when you can look for it, hmm?"

"Yeah."

Rajirr walked back up the stairs, and inevitably the service attendant's greed got the better of him and Dar'Zhar-do saw the Ohmes walk out of the door to go look for that thousand-septim earring, leaving the ground floor vacant.

Rajirr ran back down the stairs as Dar'Zhar-do climbed in one of the windows from outside, and poured over the desk looking for the keys.

"We've gotta hurry, it probably won't be too long until that guy gives up the search."

"Dar'Zhar-do checked the last of the drawers, but found no keys."

"They're probably on him, you're gonna have to pocket them, I'll take care of the guards down below while you do."

"Hmm, one of the guards below should have keys too, no?"

"Not a chance. They aren't stupid enough to walk around down there carrying keys when that Alfiq-raht could magic them away. If they were they wouldn't need our help to break them out. Now do you need me to hold your hand through that too?"

"Do not get your whiskers in a knot Rajirr, Dar'Zhar-do could not call himself a thief if he could not steal a set of keys. Create the distraction for the other guards."

Rajirr did not protest, and continued on his way downstairs to the cell halls, and Dar'Zhar-do crept outside to stalk the service attendant.

Sneaking up on one of the Imperials or few other smooth-skins who live in Torval was always simple. Their useless ears, noses, and eyes when in the dark meant he could practically walk right in front of them without being spotted, but while being a Khajiit - a Suthay-raht in particular - helped make him a natural at sneaking, stealing and lock picking, it was also all the more difficult to steal from other Khajiit.

If a Khajiit could not see a thief sneak up on them, they might hear them, or smell them if the conditions were right. While the moonless nights meant even a Khajiit would find difficulty seeing in the dark, the fact it was night meant there were no sounds to cover him, and no smells from the market to confuse him.

But then, this attendant was an Ohmes, which made him practically just an easy a target as any smooth-skin. Dar'Zhar-do was still amazed as to how he managed to steal that silly tooth necklace J'shabi always wore, even when it was tied around her neck. That was the last prize he stole before everything changed at the festival, but it makes a good symbol of his skill.

As Dar'Zhar-do approached his target, the oblivious Ohmes was searching through plant shrubs in the clearing, and the ruffling of the leaves would drown out any accidents he could make after all.

Dar'Zhar-do reached out his arm and extended a claw to cut loose the pouch from his side, when suddenly the Ohmes stopped his search. If not for Dar'Zhar-do's tail he might have lost his balance and fell toward him, and it was a struggle to not gasp.

The Ohmes turned his head and began searching in a different area, and made Dar'Zhar-do bounce away from his line of sight. So he did not detect him, at least.

It happened again when he attempted a second try at cutting the pouch, but still Dar'Zhar-do bounced out of the way before he could be spotted. He wondered for a moment if it was Baan Dar playing tricks on him.

Dar'Zhar-do hatched a trick of his own, then, and figured he would help the Ohmes in his search. He quietly unlatched one of the many earrings of his own and tossed it in a nearby shrub. No doubt the noise alerted even the useless Ohmes' ears, and his attention was drawn toward the source of it.

As the Ohmes dug his fingers through the shrub, catching a glint of the item within, he was none the wiser to realize his money pouch was missing, as well as his keys.

Yet Dar'Zhar-do could hear the glee of his excitement when he found the earring, and wondered how long it would take him to realize it was certainly not diamond-encrusted.

Still pretty valuable though, Dar'Zhar-do will make a point to steal it back sometime.

In mere seconds Dar'Zhar-do was back to the jail, and Rajirr was climbing out of a hatch from below.

"You got the key?"

"Yeah, and the guards?"

"Well, they won't be getting up for awhile, so yeah, they're 'distracted'."

"Whatever. The Ohmes will be coming back, you must keep him away while this one breaks the prisoners out."

"You'd better have a plan for clearing our names when your dad finds out about this."

"Uh, we will cross that bridge when we get there, yes?"

"So long as we don't burn any along the way."

Dar'Zhar-do did not stay to respond, as he saw the shadow of the Ohmes into the light of the room, and jumped down the latch to the jail area.

The stone walls and floor made the place feel cold. The multitude of cells and hallways felt like a maze. There were no prisoners inside of the ones closest to the doors, but a few guardsmen lay unconscious throughout the halls themselves.

Dar'Zhar-do passed down them all until he reached the door to the interrogation chamber, sealed off from the rest of the cells.

He stood by the door and took a deep breath. There was no turning back now.

He pushed the door open and began thumbing away through the keys looking for which one would fit. He did not look up to see the prisoners in the cell, he did not say anything upon entering, he imagined they would be asleep at this time.

So it was a surprise to Dar'Zhar-do then when the key ring was suddenly torn from his grasp, and flew toward the cell where Jo'banja stood.

"This one told you they would forget eventually, Zalani!" the Alfiq-raht mage shouted.

Dar'Zhar-do was too confused as to what was happening to speak, until he heard the sound of Jo'banja's cell unlocking. Somehow they must have been woken up before he got there.

"Oh, wait! This one came here to save you-agh, stop!" Dar'Zhar-do's words were cut off as Jo'banja jumped at his leg. He tried shaking her off, but suddenly found his entire body going numb and stiff, and he fell like a statue to the floor in the same position he was standing in. He could not speak, he could not move, but he could see, and he could think. Jo'banja must have cast some sort of paralysis spell on him.

Dar'Zhar-do could only watch as Tatanja, Zalani, and Tolgunn walked away from their cells.

"Check for the guards, Tolgunn. You are the strongest here." Zalani said.

"Are you sure? I don't think they'll like us walking around like this..."

"Just do it!" Zalani snapped, and the Cathay pushed the Nord to the door of the room.

"This one thinks we should just kill him now, save us trouble later." Jo'banja hissed.

The Alfiq-raht jumped on Dar'Zhar-do's paralyzed body, and he felt a fear like no other wash over him. He cannot speak to explain himself, that he was here to free them. He cannot do anything.

"No, sister. There is no need for death. Let us just escape." Tatanja ordered.

"He could tell his father we escaped. They would be after us sooner. If he dies now they may not know until morning, or at least awhile longer." Jo'banja countered.

"No! He is not yet even an adult. You would not kill a child Jo'banja."

"He was certainly ready to kill your daughter as we heard. If not for Jahirr he would have!"

Dar'Zhar-do felt a surge of anger upon hearing those words, the lies, but no matter what he tried, he could not move his jaw to form words.

He saw Jo'banja's claws shoot out from her paws as she approached his exposed neck, but before she could take her chance, Tatanja grabbed the Alfiq-raht and picked her up away from him.

"You are making a mistake sister, we will regret this!" Jo'banja shouted.

Tolgunn returned to the room, scratching his head.

"Well, the guards are all taking a nap. They must be pretty heavy sleepers, they didn't wake up when I asked if we could leave."

"What do you mean they're taking a nap?" Tatanja asked.

"That is not important, that means they do not mind us leaving, Tolgunn. We should go. Now!" Zalani waved at everyone to follow, and the Nord, Cathay, Ohmes-raht and Alfiq-raht left the jail.

Dar'Zhar-do stayed there, still paralyzed, with conflicting thoughts going through his mind.

He came here with the intention of freeing them, to save them from their execution tomorrow, and yet those same people were about to kill him. He was not sure what to think about that...True, they did not know why he was there, but they did not even give him a chance to explain himself.

Well, they are on their own then, where ever they are planning to go. He was planning to help them escape, maybe even escape with them, but now he will not, not that he really could if he still wanted to anyway.

It could have been seconds, or minutes, before Dar'Zhar-do heard Rajirr walking up next to him. He looked down and shook his head.

"I hate to say 'I told you so', but, well I told you... I guess I'm lucky they didn't just kill you. Then you wouldn't be able to hold up your end of the deal."

Rajirr crouched down and picked up Dar'Zhar-do by the legs and tossed him over his shoulder.

"Then again, I guess this kept you from running off with them and trying to get out of it. I can tell it'll be awhile before that spell wears off, and by then we'll be well out of the city. Too far for you to try and turn back alone. You're not getting out of this deal, you're helping me break Dazlah out of the Dark Brotherhood."

The words hit Dar'Zhar-do like stones. Even though he had agreed to help earlier, he had thought he would figure some way to get out of it, or around it. Around having to kill someone.

But now he has no choice.

Dar'Zhar-do is a murderer.

* * *

 **So, what do you think of Zhar's situation? This will be the arc that brings him into the story properly, but will that be for good or ill for the Pride of Portneu? He's a tangled mess with everything going on, and the things he'll go through might have an effect on his personality.  
**

 **And what of Tatanja, Jo'banja, Zalani and Tolgunn? Where will they go now that they can escape? Perhaps some of you might have an idea...**

 **P.S. I'm curious if you can analyze the meaning of the chapter name for this. It's a real-life proverb, but in this context, it means something very different. Kudos if you can!**

 **Also, I went off the deep end and renamed the 'Beneath New Moons' chapters to 'A Tale of Two Kitties', as a pun to the story 'A Tale of Two Cities'. I feel it reflects the chapters better than Beneath New Moons did (partly because my idea slightly changed as it was written). Tweaked a few others as well. Just a minor thing, but I have an obsession with chapter titles so that will probably not be the only time it happens. :P**


	16. Chapter 13: Anywhere but Elsweyr

**I had a lot of fun writing this chapter in particular. It's longer than I was planning but I'm glad I took the extra time to give it a full, natural length. We're back to the Pride's point of view, although this chapter takes place a few weeks after the events of Corinthe, to give things time to settle. There's small bits of information about events that take place in Oblivion, and the Elder Scrolls Novels 'The Infernal City' and 'Lord of Souls' but I wrote it in such a way as to note spoil what actually happens, at least - not the endings, because information can be distorted over time.**

* * *

 **Chapter 13: Anywhere but Elsweyr**

Loredas, 13th of Heart Fire, 4E 98

Dear Diary,

It is strange. This one has always maintained a good schedule to write in her diary when time permits, sometimes daily, but at least once a week. It has been three weeks since Khinashi last wrote. Much has happened since we left Corinthe leaving for Cyrodiil about three weeks ago, but at the same time, nothing has happened.

The ride out of Elsweyr was long and rough, and there were times our cart was stopped, and our escort questioned of the contents in the back – where we were hiding. It was true, all of Elsweyr by then had heard of us, or heard the lies about us. Tarel at-Taneth was right, if we did not leave Elsweyr, it would not have been long before we were discovered. Luckily our escort was good with words, and we avoided any conflict until after we had crossed the border.

Khinashi has heard many things about the lands outside of Elsweyr, and had always wanted to travel. Even now, this one's curiosity drives her to explore, but...Cyrodiil is much different from Elsweyr, and so are its people. It did not take long before we realized we were unwelcome inside the cities – the presence of Ma'ketra, Ma'krin and Jahirr made most afraid, and our explanations fell on deaf ears. Bravil, even as close to Elsweyr as it was, would not allow us inside. Even then, we were lucky we were brought to Bravil, for at least some there have an understanding of our kind. If it had been another town, except for Leyawiin, they may have simply cut us down on sight.

We lived in the wilderness for a few days nearby but decided to move on, for being so close to Elsweyr was a risk in itself. We decided to head west to Skingrad rather than Leyawiin to the south – for it would be too much a risk of running into the Renrijra Krin there - and we learned from our previous mistakes. We travelled under the cover of night and kept to the forested regions and made a hidden camp amongst the trees, while J'shabi or this one would go inside the city to buy supplies with the coin we were given for our journey. Khinashi has yet to get used to the houses being built on the ground, and the lack of Khajiit. The lack of trees and thus being able to see much further is a strangeness as well, but it is nice to look up at the sky at night and count the stars...until Khinashi looks for the Moons and remembers.

It has been nearly a month since the Festival of the Third Moon and none have seen Jone or Jode since. It has been the topic of the crowds during our delves into the cities, but Khinashi knows it has caused much more than simply chatter in Elsweyr, however any details have not yet made it to Cyrodiil. People here are starting to call it the Void Nights Anomoly, and something about that fills Khinashi with anger. It as if it is simply a fact and nothing more to them, all the suffering and confusion it will be causing within our homeland is simply a topic of idle chat...Khinashi wants to learn more about it, to see how such a thing could happen – how Ra-Zara'chi could do this, but where does one go to learn such a thing? Who within Cyrodiil would care enough to research it? This one hopes more details upon events in Elsweyr will reach Cyrodiil soon. It is troubling not knowing what is happening there, Corinthe could not have been the only place to be affected.

And now we come to the present. We stayed around Skingrad for about two weeks until our camp was discovered by a group of hunters. Dagi hiding in the trees could see them far before they approached, and Jahirr could smell them from just as far away, and so we had time to hide Ma'krin, Ma'ketra and Jahirr – for we thought they would simply pass by without trouble if they did not see them. We were wrong, for they were not hunters, they were bandits, and our attempts at making peace did not go over well.

After Dagi took down a few of their number from his position in the trees, and Jahirr, Ma'ketra and Ma'krin stormed out of their hiding places, the remaining bandits – not knowing what they were – ran in fear from the sight of them, or from one of Smallpaw's spells, this one is not quite sure...

J'shabi insisted we did not pursue them, and some of us were more reluctant than others to agree, for they may have had supplies which could have helped us, but J'shabi knows more of living in the wilds than the rest of us except for Jahirr, and so we let them go. We could not risk them returning with larger numbers and so now we travel further west, to the city of Kvatch.

Already this one can see it on the horizen as morning approaches, and her thoughts drift away to what she had read about it. It is common knowledge to almost everyone of its history in the past century... the site of the first Oblivion Gate during the Oblivion Crisis, where the Champion of Cyrodiil shut it down and rescued the only surviving, secret heir of the Emporer. The city had been completely destroyed in the attack but in the years following was rebuilt – and much bigger than before. Its significance to history, and the remains of the first Oblivion gate, mean it is a large tourist attraction which has attributed to its success following the beginning of the Fourth Era.

Khinashi is sad that Ma'ketra, Ma'krin and Jahirr will not be able to see the inside of the city walls when we arrive there tomorrow.

* * *

For a moment it seemed like there was total darkness as the sun was eclipsed by the round object in the air, but then it was smashed aside and sent flying high above and far away. Khinashi was the furthest, but she was not sure she would be able to make it in time before it hit the ground. Ma'krin always hit the hardest, but also the most unreliable, and so J'shabi can never coordinate with him like Khinashi and Ma'ketra are.

A blur of fur swipes past Khinashi in the blink of an eye and dives into the grass, scratching and sliding, as she lifts her head and smacks the ball up again, just before it hit the ground. It does not fly in a random direction, but merely straight up in the air, repetively bouncing it up and down as Ma'ketra turns around and positions herself. Khinashi realizes this and turns back away, and surveys the scene.

J'shabi is busy running toward them and will reach them in a few seconds, but Ma'krin hangs back, walking at a relaxed pace. Khinashi gives a sign to her partner, to show what strategy she thinks they should do, and Ma'ketra complies with the suggestion.

Ma'ketra angles her head forward and smacks the ball high and far, but not as far as Ma'krin would do. Far enough that Khinashi could reach it in time, directly within her path. She knew not to hit it too far, for else J'shabi might intercept it, and they were already dangerously close to their end zone, she would not have to bounce it far to win the round.

And so Khinashi jumped up at an angle, twisting in the air as she too hit the ball with her head, and bounced it far and to the side, sailing high above J'shabi's head as she neared. J'shabi turned to run toward its destination, but before she reached it, Ma'ketra was there again, bouncing it back over to Khinashi.

This volley went on for awhile, and Khinashi could see the frustration in J'shabi's facial expressions as she was unable to intercept it at any time. It is this J'shabi refers to whenever she would call this game 'keep away' instead of Thjizzashka. Also because it was easier for her to pronounce.

Eventually J'shabi could not keep up, and Khinashi and Ma'ketra only had to get passed the slow Ma'krin to win the round. Khinashi had doubts he would even bother to intervene.

She was surprised then, when she saw that Ma'krin was actually charging toward her.

Khinashi judged how long remained until the ball could be bounced away from him, but it soon became a choice between being trampled or not, and Khinashi in her wisdom valued not having broken limbs over winning a game, and dived out of the way before he reached her.

Ma'krin, as fast as he was running – which is to say faster than he normally bothers to – hit the ball hard, very hard, and the angle at which he did sent the ball soaring across our game field. It went even beyond our field and into the city...and then it was out of sight, covered by the busy streets of Kvatch.

The sound of a window breaking was heard seconds later, followed by a few screams and running peoples, until they realized the circumstances.

Khinashi heard a small laugh coming from their sole audience, Smallpaws, who seemed to approve of the direction the game was taken.

"Well? Did we win?" J'shabi asks. This humoured Khinashi, for she knew even J'shabi must have heard what happened, and yet still winning was her first concern.

"That depends on what you define winning as, J'shabi. Ma'krin sent the ball past the line we decided would be the mark you needed to reach, without using anything other than our heads to do so, and without letting it touch the ground. Yet, he also sent it into the city and broke a window, which is sure to not make our already suspicious neighbors any friendlier."

"So we won."

"Spoken like a true Khajiit, J'shabi. Yes, you and Ma'krin won the round, which is to say the game as well, since we cannot really continue."

Both of them laughed and smiled, but Khinashi noticed J'shabi wincing, and her attention drifting past her. She turned to see Jahirr and Dagi returning from today's hunt for food, which seemed successful at first glance judging by the carcass of a dead deer strapped to Jahirr's back.

It has been nice to see Dagi and Jahirr working together so well, their skills complement each other perfectly for hunting. Jahirr as a Pahmar-raht could track with his nose and outrun any beast – already a trait no other race or form of a race could boast - but with a Dagi's ability to climb heights, and Jizad's own personal skill at archery, it made the task laughably simple and systematic. With the pride working together, living in the wilderness was not as much of a challenge as Khinashi thought it would be, and certainly not as difficult as J'shabi made it out to be. It had become so easy that they allowed themselves free time to play games, like today.

"How are you back from your hunt already? You've hardly been gone for an hour at most, it's only mid-day. You do remember what we agreed on, right?" J'shabi asks accusitively. This one could tell what was coming, and the look on Jahirr and Dagi's faces told her that Khinashi should step away and read a book or something. Yet her curious ears disallowed her from tuning out completely.

"Yes, Jahirr and this one took that into account-"

"Tell me then, so I know you remember."

Dagi sighed before beginning. This had not been the first time he had to do this.

"It we are to kill any creatures for food, it cannot be young, it cannot seemingly be a parent to a young child, and if female it cannot be pregnant. We must kill it as quickly as possible so as to minimize its suffering from pain, and avoid killing it in front of others of its kind to avoid scarring them."

"It looks young." J'shabi says flatly.

Khinashi tore a peek over her shoulder to see the deer. It was by no means a child, a young adult at very least.

"J'shabi, we are not their only predators, most do not live long enough to become old in the first place – not as old as your conscience would prefer-"

"This isn't on my conscience! I didn't kill it! You two did!"

"The way you act sometimes J'shabi, you seem to feel like you did." Dagi retorted.

"Oh, just get on with it, then, it's too late now!" J'shabi flailed her arms and turned to walk away, and the sniffling sound that came from her direction indicated her eyes must be welling up. The rest of us turned to look at eachother with a knowing, sad expression. J'shabi at least understands that the rest of us must hunt for food to survive in the wilderness, but is as clear as full moons on a cloudless night that she does not like that fact of life.

After several seconds, she turned back around and approached the rest of us again as if nothing happened, such is the way her mood can change at times.

"Well, did you at least get what I asked from the market?"

Dagi looked away, afraid to meet J'shabi's gaze.

"No. That is in part why we did not take so long. We did not realize until too late that we were nearly out of money, not enough for the fruit you asked for, and we did not want to return empty-pawed, so..."

"So...?"

"Well, this one thought we could just use Moon Sugar to trade for currency, like in Elsweyr..."

"Dagi! Moon Sugar is illegal outside of Elsweyr!"

"This one knows that now! The merchants were not happy with Dagi, and then the guards arrived and chased him out...thankfully when he found Jahirr outside we escaped capture."

"So you didn't get anything I asked for." J'shabi confirmed in her mind, already at unease.

"This one is sorry..." Dagi answers, and Khinashi could tell he was looking for a way to change the subject.

"Why is Moon Sugar illegal here anyway? Dagi thought only Skooma was."

"Skooma is illegal everywhere, even Elsweyr, Moon Sugar is only allowed in Elsweyr. The sugar does not bode well with smooth-skin stomachs, and they do not understand a Khajiit's connection to it, and merely see us as drug addicts." Khinashi answers.

"Well, I can see why they think that. Even Khajiit can be harmed by Moon Sugar, Khinashi. I don't think that needs reminding..." J'shabi glares at Khinashi.

"Only when taken too much, like anything else. It just tastes good so Khajiit do that accidentally. It is still important to many aspects of our lives J'shabi – from our birth, to help ease the growing within the first week, for Senche and Senche-raht when they become of age to grow again...Our religion nessicitates it, and our diet as you know, and of course a secondary form of currency."

"No one needs anything, you're just used to it so you think you do. I don't eat it and I'm fine, and I am a Khajiit too." J'shabi adds the last part as if she felt that needed to be reminded yet again.

"It is complicated, J'shabi, but just know that Khajiit as a whole depend on it in ways not able to be understood by those not taught in its use. It has a purpose, both spiritually and practically."

"You sound like this one's father, rambling on about spirits. Dagi thinks people just make that stuff up to justify their sugar cravings."

"Perhaps," Khinashi responds. "Khinashi thinks there is more to it than that though."

Silence falls upon the pride for a few seconds, until J'shabi speaks up again.

"Well, as interesting as that may be, it doesn't change anything right now. If we're out of money I guess I'll just have to go pick some plants to eat again. They don't taste good, I had to get used to it when I was on my own."

"Dagi is still amazed from your story, J'shabi. How you managed to survive travelling through Valenwood alone...And picking plants really is a crime in Valenwood?"

"Yeah, a big one, I found that out the hard way, too...The Bosmer's twisted cannabilistic culture didn't help make Valenwood feel any more welcoming, either, and yet people still think I'm one of them!"

J'shabi picked up her backpack and was ready to begin her search, until she looked back and saw Khinashi's pack, still full of oranges from Corinthe.

"Will you ever explain why you won't let me at any of those oranges you bought back in Elsweyr? I like oranges. It would be easier if you just let me eat some of them so I wouldn't have to keep buying other things, or eating plants."

"Soon, J'shabi." Khinashi said with a smile.

"You said that last time! When is 'soon'? They'll go rotten if we don't eat them soon, and we would all have to live off of them solely just to avoid that even!"

"Clearly we should not have given Khinashi half of all the gold we were given and tell her to buy our supplies. She just spent them all on oranges and does not let us eat them." Dagi half-jokes.

"Alright, fine...This one guesses it has been long enough, although it has been humorous to watch you all guess."

"You mean I can eat them now?"

"No, Khinashi will show you why you cannot. Come, let us go to Kvatch, J'shabi."

* * *

The Suthay and Ohmes walk through the gates of Kvatch, and Khinashi quickly scans the area for what she had been wanting to see since they arrived in Cyrodiil. Or, at least once of the things.

"There it is!" Khinashi shouts and runs over to a large ashen-coloured arc portruding from the ground. Large spikes jut out from the sides, before the arc breaks off at uneven sides. It stands about twice their height, and large enough for several of them to pass through.

Khinashi disregards the small fence surrounding it and jumps over, and walks up the platform and touches the arc.

"Khinashi...are you sure that's a good idea? I don't think they'd put a fence around...whatever that is if they didn't mind people touching it."

"Jone and Jode, almost a hundred years have passed, and it is still warm!"

"Khinashi?"

Khinashi looked around and took note at the people giving her suspicious looks, and decided it best to heed J'shabi's advice, and climbed back down.

"What is that thing anyway?" J'shabi asks.

"This is what this one was telling you about, J'shabi – it is the ruins of the Oblivion gate that destroyed Kvatch at the end of the 3rd era during the Oblivion Crisis! Or at least, one of them, anyway...The one that was shut down."

"Oh, that." J'shabi says, uninterested, looking away to find something else to talk about.

"What? You mean you are not excited to see this? This is where the Oblivion Crisis started in full, and where the Hero of Kvatch rescued Martin Septim, who would go on to save the world!"

"I know, I've heard the stories too, and more than one of those times from you. It's an interesting story, if it really happened. I don't mean to sound ungrateful, but, it doesn't really change anything now, does it? That was almost a hundred years ago."

"The Oblivion Crisis was a real event, J'shabi, Oblivion Gates opened up over the whole world. This is not the only remnant of that time, even in Elsweyr and every other province, less-intact ruins remain. There is no questioning if it happened."

"I know, I didn't mean it like that, I just mean...History has been known to...you know, get carried away sometimes, especially tales with heroes. You know that more than me."

"Yes, but this is an exception. The Champion of Cyrodiil really did all of those things...and Martin-"

"Single-handedly defeated the Daedric Prince of Destruction in open combat in the Imperial City, yes I know. Don't we call him Merrunz or something?"

"Actually, that is not exactly-ah, forget it...and yes, Merunnz – sometimes Ja'khajiit, too."

"But doesn't Ja'khajiit mean kitten?"

"Yes, and also another word for Suthay-raht, after a group of them once-"

"Okay, okay! I get it, it's complicated. You said you were going to show me why I'm not allowed to eat oranges anymore."

Khinashi hung her mouth open for a couple seconds, slightly unwilling to stop talking, before agreeing and walking off toward the market. She took one last look at the ruins of the Oblivion gate, and tried to imagine what it might have looked like 98 years ago. She cannot decide if she would be fascinated or scared to death, or both.

The sound of chatter and steet performers reaches its height as the two Khajiit approach the market district, just southeast of the Chapel of Akatosh. Like all of the other cities they have visited so far in Cyrodiil, it mostly consists of humans, with some elves, and rarely any Khajiit or Argonians. Khinashi is somewhat glad for the last, as in Bravil, the Argonians never gave her welcoming looks, but then, perhaps her staring was not recieved well either. She had never seen one in person before then.

Khinashi followed her nose to her destination through the bustling crowds, and the aroma of many other scents, and found it in the form of a fruit stall and a large, heavy-set Breton who gave a clear look of impatience. His attire was that of most Cyrodiilic merchants. Dull-coloured in comparison to what Khinashi had come to expect from Elsweyr, as if they gave no mind to what they wore other than that they were wearing something. 'Shirts' as they called them, were tucked in, and made their legs look awkwardly long.

When Khinashi stood next to the stall, she had to pull her head over the counter just to see him, even J'shabi, who was a little taller, would have to stand on her toes. Dagi would have to stand on the stall itself. Humans were always roughly the same height as eachother, in the end, so they do not take into account shorter races like Bosmer – or some forms of Khajiit.

"Hello." Khinashi said, to grab the man's attention. He looked around for a couple seconds before looking down, and his expression turned to one of even more impatience.

"What is it, cat? Can't find your parents or something? I can't help with that."

Khinashi sneered for a moment at the merchant's response. Khajiit call eachother Cats quite oftenly, but when outsiders do, it is always with a tone that reeks of rudeness.

"This one would like to make a considerably large transaction with your business, which Khajiit thinks you will find quite generous."

"You gonna buy something or what?"

"Sell something, actually."

"Look I don't mean any offence but I don't really care for what you picked up off the ground and think is valuable. I sell produce, you got fruit or vegetables then fine. I'm not interested in anything else, and don't expect a deal if it's half-rotten or...or might as well be, just don't waste my time."

Khinashi did not answer, and instead simply hauled up her sack full of oranges onto the stall for the merchant to see.

"Oh, oranges, is it? Well, lets see here...How many are there?"

"50, fresh from the Tenmar forest of Elsweyr."

The Breton took out a few oranges and checked them over.

"I think I could give you about...400 gold for them."

Khinashi saw J'shabi's stunned look. Khinashi had spent only 100 gold on them in Corinthe.

"Do not try to make a fool of this one. You would need to make a better offer of twice that much if you want them."

The Breton seemed angered by Khinashi's words.

"Twice? Are you trying to run me out of business? 400 Gold is a good deal! And these Oranges don't seem like they'll last much more than a week at best."

"Khinashi, that is a lot of money, that's already twice what we were given when-"

"This one has brought these all the way from Elsweyr, they are foreign here. You will have no trouble selling them all in a week and still make a large profit."

"That's just too much, I can't do that. 400 gold or no deal."

"Perhaps this one could take them to one of your competitors then, hmm? They may be more willing to give Khajiit a better offer. They would be wise, too - how often do Cyrodiils get to eat Oranges now that Elsweyr is not a part of the Empire?"

The Breton did not answer, and so Khinashi picked up the sack of Oranges and started to step away, despite J'shabi's protests.

"Alright, fine, 800 gold it is. I may not make much profit off of them alone, but you're right, not many come this far to sell those anymore. It'll attract customers."

Khinashi smiled knowingly and turned around, placing them back on the stall.

"You have made a wise descision. You will not regret this."

"I hope not." The Breton said. He pulled out a large sack of coins for Khinashi to count, as he did the same for the Oranges. Khinashi smiled to J'shabi, and her stunned, speechless expression was more vaulable than any amount of gold she could have haggled for. The Breton's curiosity took the better of him and he took a bite out of one of the oranges.

"It's been awhile since I tasted these. You know they say they used to grow in Cyrodiil, ages ago."

"When Cyrodiil was a jungle?" Khinashi asked. She had read about that, but she was never quite certain of the truth of them.

"If you believe in that. I'm not sure I do, it doesn't make much sense, being so close to Skyrim and High Rock. I think historians just got it wrong."

"Something must have been different for them to think that was the case, though. Languages have not changed so radically in thousands of years, it must be more than transcription errors." Khinashi countered.

"I'm no history buff, but if something big did happen – like those crazy theories people make up about it – I'm pretty sure more people would have mentioned it."

Khinashi took his words into consideration. If history was to be believed, Cyrodiil would have once been a land of jungles rather than the temperate landscape it is today, but how long ago is unknown, for some books contradict eachother across many time periods, and such a radical change in landscape could not have been natural.

"Some say Talos used his voice to make Cyrodiil cold. Others say he used his chin...M'aiq wonders, how big must his chin be to do that, hmm? Perhaps that is why they spell it in all capital letters."

The voice came from behind them, and Khinashi turned to see a Cathay Khajiit in brown robes and a strange fur hat. He did not look at them, and simply continued on his way, walking with his hands behind his back.

Khinashi nodded to J'shabi to indicate for her to finish counting, and approached the mysterious Khajiit.

"What do you mean? You know how Cyrodiil was changed from a jungle?"

"M'aiq knows much, and tells some. M'aiq knows many things others do not."

Still the Cathay did not stop walking, Khinashi ran up to his side and walked with him.

"Hmm, do you know what happened to the Moons, then? Why they are gone?"

"The Moons are not gone, they are simply hiding. M'aiq is on a pilgramage to find them and move them elsewhere."

"Um, M'aiq, this one does not think it works like that. How would you move them even if you did find them?"

"M'aiq will put them in his pocket of course. What? You look at M'aiq as if he is a liar."

Khinashi was not sure how to respond to that, and so she did not, and simply changed the subject.

"Are there any others searching with you?"

"M'aiq prefers to adventure alone. Others just get in the way. And they talk, talk, talk."

"This one is sorry, she was just curious about the Moons. Khinashi will not bother you anymore, then. Good luck on your pilgramage, clanmate."

M'aiq stopped for a moment and ruffled around his robes and pulled out a bundle of folded paper. He stared at it for a few moments, before handing it toward Khinashi.

"M'aiq thinks you should have this, then. It knows things, but not as much as M'aiq."

"What is it?"

"Lies written on paper for fools to read. M'aiq thinks."

Khinashi unfolded it and noticed the symbol of the city of Riverhold drawn on the top left edge. 'Black Horse Courier' was written in bold letters on the top, except 'Horse' was crossed out and replaced with 'Pahmar' just above it. Beneath that were the words 'Living Under Void Nights' as the article name. Khinashi knew of the Black Pahmar Courier, an Elsweyr adaption of the Black Horse Courier of the Cyrodiilic empire founded over a century ago. If this is what she thought it was...then it would tell her everything she has wanted to know – or at least some of it.

She looked up to thank M'aiq, but he was already gone.

Khinashi ran back to J'shabi to show her, and decided she would read it in detail while they returned to their camp.

* * *

The Black Pahmar Courier, Elsweyr Edition.  
10th of Heart Fire, 4E 98  
By S'renjar

Living Under Void Nights

By now all Khajiit are no doubt aware that the glistening twin moons that have guided our kind from the beginning of time have failed us, or we have failed them. What most may not yet know is the true extent of what this means for us.

For the past month S'renjar has travelled across Elsweyr to learn the answer to that question, and the truth is darker than the Void Nights themselves.

This one will start with what he feels is the most concerning, and because there have been many theories – some of which were worse than what has become of the situation, so in some ways it may ease a few minds, despite the harrowing implications of which the truth could mean for us.

Ever since their initial disappearance, every Khajiit newborn, from Dune to Senchal and beyond, has grown to become a Suthay within the following week. Despite the absense of the moons, as of so far there does not seem to be any other peculiarities of note. So no, Dro'rajul of Orcrest, they are not becoming demonic abominations or born without souls, or whatever your third theory was. You can climb down from the Orcrest arena walls and stop spreading hysteria amongst our people, if local authorities have not already spiked your water supplies.

The question remains of how this might affect the future of our people if the Void Nights do not end. What will happen in a hundred years, when the last of our other forms die as elders, and only Suthays remain? Elsweyr is a harsh land, and one we have always had to work together to survive in. Every form has a purpose within our society, and to so suddenly - within the very next generation - have that taken away from us, how will we continue as we do today? Without the Dagi, who will collect the fruit in the rainforest our southern Khajiit depend on as a source of food? Without the Pahmar, who will replace our best trackers for hunting? Our Cathays have proven our best warriors, and the Ohmes and Tojays as our abassadors to other lands in which our other forms would be unwelcome. The Senche, who have always been able to turn the tide of battle even in the unlikliest of situations, are a staple in the defence of our kingdom, and without them, the Bosmer and Argonians may seek to reclaim territory, and could do so with ease. Even the smallest of us, the Alfiq, use their size and magic to become an irreplacable asset to us all. If this were the only effect the Void Nights had on us, it would already be terrible enough, but it seems the divines do not pity us this day, which brings S'renjar to his next discovery.

The rumours you have heard surrounding our sacred Moon Sugar are true. Harvests since the Void Nights have become dilluted in their sweetness – and it is not just because the new overseer at the Torval planation is bad at her job, but that may also be a factor to some extent. Moon Sugar harvested before the crisis retains its special sweet flavour we so depend on, but any harvested afterwards reportedly tastes 'dull', along with a handful of profanities. Moonpriests have reported a lack of visions as of late from this change in Moon Sugar, but – although they did not tell him this directly – they also appear to make more sense, so that may be one beneficial side effect. Conversely, newborn Khajiit treated with improper sugar have become even more unbearably annoying during their first week of life, and it is safe to say the same may be said for Senche and Senche-raht who reach their second growing stage. Last – and perhaps most concerning – Skooma and Sugar addicts are not happy, and it is a possibility their withdrawls may make the craziest among them try something irrational if a substitute is not found soon.

Many have tried to covince S'renjar to not release the information regarding our Moon Sugar crisis publicly – some for personal gain, others in an attempt to stall the inevitable panics and riots this information will cause - but this one feels it too important to hide behind political barriers, and even greed has its limits. To those who have threatened to kill him if he revealed this, S'renjar only has this to say to you: Good luck finding him. To those who have bribed him with gold and other pleasantries, S'renjar says this: You are fools, but thank you for the coin nonetheless, it will surely make hiding from the others easier.

Next we come to the political implications of the Void Nights. Many of you, or at least the ones who actually pay attention to your Clan Mothers during weekly sermons, know of the rotational system Elsweyr's leadership is based upon, formally known as one of the aspects of the Ja-Kha'jay. In normal times, power over Elsweyr would change paws depending on the phases of the moons – be that the King of Senchal and the Khajiit lords in the south, or the tribal Chieftains of the north. Each major city of Elsweyr also took this concept and made it their own on a smaller scale, defining terms for ownership of resources or territory within the city, or – in the case of Senchal's role-model unemployment statistics – when and which Khajiit work and when they get payed. It looked nice on paper and in truth, it did work out pretty well when no one had any reason to believe the Moons would suddenly disappear, but now, many of Elsweyr's cities are going through a lot of problems of a beurectactic and domestic nature. Dar'ji, one of Senchal's many working class citizens, is enjoying his extended paid vacation - a lesson for other employers across Elsweyr to not write in paper that you will pay your employee's vacation until either Masser or Secunda next shine full, during the eclipse – the last moment the moons were seen - in a failed attempt to rip them off with the eclipse counting as his only vacation time. Investigations are underway to see if dockworker Dar'ji is somehow responsible for the Void Nights.

To prevent civil war between northern and southern Elsweyr, Mane Rid-Rawl'vah has declared complete and unrivaled power over all resources and stately affairs until a more permanent agreement can be made between all reigning powers throughout Elsweyr regarding the Void Nights. Many are not happy with this descision, believing the Mane should remain a spiritual advisor and non-partisan to the ruling governments of Elsweyr, but it seems to be keeping claws from clashing so far. The Mane has also requested that all Khajiit once more shave their manes – this time out of respect to the missing moons. As with any regional shaving, nothing bad will happen to those who refuse, but you will probably be given dirty looks by the more patriotic of our people on the streets, and given bad deals by merchants. Even Mane Rid-Rawl'vah has opted to shave his own mane this time. S'renjar feels that defeats the point of being the Mane, but ah well.

Many have their theories for what might have caused the Void Nights to occur, all of them ranging from crazy to non-sensical, and as such not suitable for a professional article such as this. Do not fear, the Mane himself has dedicated all available resources into looking in the truth of the matter, and if an answer can be found, he will find it. Progress on research may be slow while Elsweyr settles into the fact that the Moons are gone, and what that brings with it. S'renjar has heard outside organizations such as the College of Whispers are also looking into why the Moons have disappeared, but as we all know, if you want to learn about the moons you ask Khajiit, not smooth-skin mages in Cyrodiil who think Azurah is spelled without the letter H.

* * *

"So only Suthays are born, Moon Sugar loses its flavour and Elsweyr is in a political crisis and at threat of civil war while Ra-Zara'chi siezes all power over the land. I guess it...could have been worse?" J'shabi says, after taking in all of the information Khinashi read to her on their way back to camp.

"Not by much." Khinashi responds. She was not surprised by the news, she had been suspecting this would be the case, but it hardly made accepting it any easier.

"Well, think on the bright side, Khinashi. Khajiit might've not been able to be born at all, Moon Sugar could have stopped growing completely, and it could have caused a full-blown civil war."

"Without our forms, how will Elsweyr stand together? We have to work together to survive – we always have."

Khinashi was lost in thought as she looked to their camp in the distance. She could see them already as little specs, with Ma'ketra and Ma'krin being more like dots. Elsweyr has grown depending on eachother to survive for thousands of years, and it has made them strong. Without each other, they were weak. Others would see them as weak, and would be swept aside like so many other lost races, if the sugar and political crisis did not make Khajiit kill eachother by then already. Ayleid, Falmer, Kothringi, Lilmothiit...Khajiit. Why would Ra-Zara'chi want this?

"The other races do just fine, and they don't have Senche-rahts or Alfiqs or Dagis. They all look the same...for the most part."

"It is different for them, J'shabi...Khajiit are different, that is what makes us Khajiit."

"The Void Nights may not last forever. It could still just be a natural event, they could return."

Khinashi laughed at this. She was not sure if J'shabi was trying to cheer her up, or if she truly believed that.

"You cannot truly think it is natural still. It is too coincidental. They have been gone for a month, and right when Ra-Zara'chi kills his brother to become the Mane? That would not make sense."

"It makes more sense to me than someone just...making the moons disappear. How could any one person do that? How could any number of people do that, for that matter?"

Khinashi remained silent for several seconds before responding.

"This one does not know...but she is determined to find out."

J'shabi looked at Khinashi as if she were the one spouting nonsense this time.

"Oh, and I suspect you just think a book out there will tell you? Maybe we could check a local library, they might have a spare copy of 'How to Make Masser and Secunda Vanish from Thin Air'". J'shabi said in a joking tone.

Khinashi would normally find J'shabi's teasing humorous, but not this time.

"You are mocking this one." Khinashi said. Her ears unvoluntarily flattened to dismiss any notion that found it funny.

"You can't really be serious, Khinashi. Not about this, if this were anything else, I would go along with whatever mad scheme you could come up with, but this?"

"We are free to go anywhere, J'shabi. Anywhere but Elsweyr, there must be someone, somewhere that is trying to find out what happened to the Moons. If we found them, maybe we could help them, and maybe learn how to reverse it, maybe...How to bring the moons back."

"If there were anyone trying to do that, I doubt we would be of any help. We're just kids. Sure we may have gotten lucky and survived Corinthe, and helped Portneu, but we're still kids. They probably wouldn't even want our help."

"Maybe, but we could still try." Khinashi said, as firmly as she could to indicate how serious she was about it.

J'shabi kept opening and closing her mouth, trying to find words to retort, but eventually gave up.

"Alright, fine, I guess if I can't talk you out of how silly it sounds, then tell me this: Where would we even start to try and learn what happened to the Moons? We can't go to Elsweyr, don't even try to convince me on that."

Khinashi saw J'shabi's question as a challenge. She sought to convince Khinashi to give up by showing her the reality of the difficulty of the situation, but Khinashi was not going to go down easily.

In truth, she had no idea where to start. The first natural thought was a Clan Mother, or a Moonpriest, but they only live in Elsweyr...Khinashi looked down, not wanting to face J'shabi's "I told you so" look, even though she would never say those words.

Her eyes caught a glimpse of the newspaper again, and she was reminded of the final lines. She re-read them, and smiled knowingly to J'shabi.

"The College of Whispers. The Newspaper said they were researching the Void Nights, and plus, it is close by, or this one thinks...inbetween Kvatch and the Imperial City, east of here. We can check on your map when we get back. There are many mages there who could help us. This one's father once studied there himself, even."

"I remember that. The newspaper said they were wasting their time, or something like that, though...What makes you think a bunch of mages will know anything about what happened to the Moons?"

"It could have some basis in magic, in-fact that is quite likely, really – and the College of Whispers was one of the two magical instutitions involved in sending Umbriel back to Oblivion about 60 years ago. Do you know of that?"

"Remind me."

"Umbriel was a large floating city that devoured the souls of those beneath it, in which its occupents would then take host inside the corpses and lead them as an undead army, ever-growing, all across Tamriel. Parts of Black Marsh, Morrowind, and Cyrodiil were destroyed in its wake as it made its way to the Imperial City – where the College of Whispers and the Synod sent the entire city back to Oblivion!"

"Masser and Secunda are a lot bigger than any city, Khinashi."

"Yes, but it could have similarities with what happened to the Moons, and if it does, then there is a good chance the College of Whispers could learn more about it."

"I still don't think it's such a good idea asking a group of mages for help...When Mages are involved with anything, nothing ever seems to work out the way it should."

"But this one is a mage, too, J'shabi..."

"And nearly every one of your spells backfire in some way!...Anyway, it might help if you told the others about your plan. I don't think they would appreciate you making any descisions for them without asking them first. No matter how much you think we might be able to make some sort of difference, it all comes down to what we all think we should do."

"Then she will."

* * *

Jahirr shakes his head from the news, but does not seem all too surprised either.

Smallpaws and Ma'ketra look at each other, signing words back and forth. Ma'krin is too busy eating, and if he did hear Khinashi, gave no effort to give a response.

"So it really is happening..." Dagi says under his breath.

Khinashi looks surprised, and Dagi looks as if he instantly regretted voicing his words aloud. She was about to question him, but then J'shabi tugged her shoulder.

"You're forgetting something Khinashi. Wasn't there more you wanted to tell them?" J'shabi reminded her.

All save Ma'krin looked up toward Khinashi, as if expecting some sort of surprising revelation.

"Ah, yes...Well, this one has been thinking...These Void Nights. Since we have the oppurtunity given to us, it would make sense if we looked into what caused them."

Khinashi paused for a moment. She felt more hesitant explaining it after J'shabi's initial reaction, but became more confident when no one spoke against the idea this time so soon. Dagi was not the type to do that, nor were Smallpaws and Ma'ketra. Jahirr and Ma'krin were, to varying levels, but Jahirr seemed patient enough to hear her out, and Ma'krin simply was not paying attention.

Khinashi and J'shabi have talked about it on the way back here, and we think-"

"We?" J'shabi questioned.

"Well, Khinashi...thinks, that the Cyrodiil Mage's College of Whispers may hold the answer to our crisis."

Smallpaws's eyes instantly widened at the mention of the college, but whether out of interest or fear, Khinashi could not tell. It appeared both.

Jahirr on the other hand, firmly shook his head.

"You think these Mages may know what really happened to the Moons?" Dagi evenly questioned.

"This one does not know...Maybe? The newspaper said they were researching it. Khinashi thinks we could help them come to a conclusion. It is better than staying here, or wandering around with no real goal other than to survive. We should make the best of our freedom of travel."

Smallpaws meowed to grab Khinashi's attention, and was apparently trying to sign something to her, but she could not translate it.

"Dagi is unsure. This one does not trust mages...No offence to you, Khinashi. They only seem to make things more difficult and complicated, and often more dangerous. It may not be wise to go to them."

Jahirr nodded in agreement, which Khinashi thought was strange, given that her Father was a mage, and Jahirr was his best friend. But then...Jahirr would have been with her Father while he studied at the College of Whispers. Perhaps he is against the idea from what he had experienced in person, but her Father never told her anything bad about it.

"Sorry, Khinashi, but I still have to agree with Dagi and Jahirr. Maybe if you had an idea of some other place we could try..."

"But they are our best lead! They could find out what happened if we just help them!" Khinashi protested. This was not how she wanted it to go.

"It could also get us killed, Khinashi." Dagi responded.

"Killed? You act like we would be asking them to shoot fireballs at us and see if we survive! We would simply be asking them questions, and helping their research. Why would we need to be in any danger?"

"There is always a danger where magic is involved." Dagi continues to talk evenly, despite Khinashi's raising tone.

Smallpaws performed the deformed sound he makes when trying to use illusion spells to talk, and failing to do so. Khinashi was not sure if that was to grab her attention once more, or if he wanted to say something.

"If you want to tell Khinashi something, then just write it out. We have supplies for that in our backpacks."

Smallpaws fervently shook his head at the thought. Khinashi still never quite understood what he had against writing.

"Let's take a vote then, if more than half of us want to go then we will, but if not, we won't. Simple as that, okay?"

Khinashi nodded reluctantly, it was obvious how this would turn out now.

"Stand by Khinashi if you think we should go to the College of Whispers – so we can try to learn what happened to cause the Void Nights, or at least be pointed in the right direction." Khinashi said.

"And stand by me if you think going there would be too dangerous. We all know what happened whenever we tried to walk in a city with all of us together. Why would mages be any more willing to hear us out?" J'shabi said.

It did not take many moments for most to make their descision. Dagi and Jahirr walked next to J'shabi, Ma'ketra and Smallpaws remained still, but eventually Ma'ketra joined J'shabi's side as well. Ma'krin was still eating, of course. He did not care for the vote.

Which meant everyone else except Khinashi and Smallpaws were against going there, and Smallpaws was undecided.

Khinashi just felt like crying. She felt naive for thinking her friends would be as eager, or at least willing, to search for the truth behind the Void Nights. She felt stupid for thinkng she could make any difference about it. J'shabi was right, we are just kids...Little kittens too far from home, who will accomplish nothing...

She felt irrationally angry, then, that Smallpaws still had not joined J'shabi's side, as if were not already clear no one wanted to go, J'shabi had not yet closed the vote.

Khinashi just wished he would join J'shabi so they could go back to doing nothing.

Khinashi just wished she could understand his sign language, and know what he was trying to tell her earlier...

* * *

"Why do you hesistate, Snorepaws? What is it about this College that both intrigues you and makes you fearful?" Ma'ketra signed to me, breaking me out of my thoughts.

"I told you already, I don't really want to talk about it."

"You seemed as if you wanted to tell the walkers earlier, but they would not listen."

"I wasn't sure I wanted to then, but it doesn't matter now, anyway, it wouldn't change anything."

"Still, perhaps it would do your mind well to share it. Bad memories are worse if you keep them to yourself, and this one does not like seeing you so vulnerable. It is unlike the you Ma'ketra has come to know."

"They aren't bad memories though, at least, what I can remember of them."

"Oh, so it is a story, then? You still owe Ma'ketra a favour from earlier, so do yourself one and share what it is that bothers you about these Mages. For this one's sake to see you well, if not for your own."

"Fair enough... Well, it's not about the mages themselves. It's just the place, the College of Whispers."

"You have been there before?"

"No. Not me, someone I knew, back when I lived in High Rock."

"You do not know them anymore?"

Smallpaws considered how to answer that question, and decided it was easiest to answer it indirectly.

"He was a Breton kid, but he would be an adult by human standards now. We grew up together and he helped me learn how to read and write, and how to use magic. He himself had a special...untapped potential with magic that very few are born with, which surpassed even the Altmer's inborn ability. The College of Whispers took an interest in him, said they'd help him learn how to control it better. Then months later I got a letter...not actually adressed to me, but it said there was an accident at the College, and that he didn't survive it."

"Ah...Ma'ketra is sorry. You were close, no?"

"He was like a brother to me, and my friend, but in a way he was my father too. He...well, uh, he's kind of the one who gave me my name..."

Smallpaws sat there silently. He felt awkward for saying that, he hadn't told anyone it before. He hadn't intended to tell anyone, because he knew they would guess the rest. He knew that people would feel sorry for him if they knew he had been mistaken for a housecat at birth and given to someone as their pet for a birthday present. They wouldn't understand that if he could go back, he wouldn't have changed anything, or, not much anyway. He just hoped Ma'ketra would understand enough not to question it.

The walkers were still busy talking, arguing or debating. Smallpaws did not bother to listen.

"So you fear the college that killed him?" Ma'ketra signed at last.

"It's hard to say. I've always wanted to find out what actually happened to him. The letter never went into detail, because it wasn't adressed to people who would have been able to understand it. I considered going there myself, but when I saw it in the distance, I turned away. They wouldn't be able to understand an Alfiq, they would think I was a housecat, like everyone else. I travelled some more and ended up in Torval, and I kind of forgot about it since then. Until now."

"Perhaps the walkers here would help you learn what happened. You would at least get the chance to find out for yourself. If you still think it is something you should learn."

"It doesn't matter, since it doesn't look like we'll be going there anyway. Maybe that's just as well. Maybe I shouldn't know."

Ma'ketra looked sad for a few moments, but soon changed to a look of determination.

"Well, this one thinks you are wrong. If you turn away, you will regret this, and it will cloud your mind and keep you unhappy. Ma'ketra thinks you should know, and she will make sure you get the chance to find out."

Ma'ketra walked away from J'shabi's side, past Smallpaws, and returned to the camp.

"Ma'ketra? What are you doing?" J'shabi asked.

"You are changing your mind?" Followed Khinashi with a hopeful tone.

Ma'ketra did not turn to respond to them. She walked up to Ma'krin, who was busy licking clean a cooked leg of deer, and grabbed another with her mouth that he had not yet gotten to. Ma'krin's attention was immediately taken away from his own, and gave Ma'ketra a death stare.

Ma'ketra turned and ran away, over to where Khinashi was standing, when Ma'krin ran over to follow, she dropped the leg and held it tight beneath her feet.

"If you want this back, brother, then stand here and proclaim your will to going to this College of Whispers if the walkers ask you."

Ma'krin growled, taking it as a challenge. He never liked using signs much. He reached for the leg, but Ma'ketra held it back.

"Try to steal it and this one will put it where you cannot reach it. You would be a fool to think you could outrun her, you never have."

Ma'krin must have realized the logic in what she signed, because he immediately did as she asked and stood on the side of Khinashi for the vote.

"You want to go to the College too after all, Ma'krin?" Khinashi asked, she was more than a little surprised – and confused, as to what was happening.

Ma'krin begrudgingly nodded.

"What about you, Smallpaws? With Ma'krin voting, we are tied, so you must be our tiebreaker. Do we go or stay?"

Smallpaws looked at Ma'ketra and gave the single sign of thanks before joining her. Khinashi must have noticed, and for a moment he wondered if she understood that much of the language.

"Whatever, so it's settled, then. For better or worse, we go to the College of Whispers. I guess we should get packing." J'shabi announced. Everyone else departed from their votes and returned to camp with varying levels of enthusiasm.

Jahirr growled and stepped forward to look at both Ma'ketra and Smallpaws as they made their way back.

"You made a mistake rigging their vote, Ma'ketra. We should not go there, there is a danger the walkers are unaware of."

"If there is danger, Jahirr, then why do you not write it out to Khinashi, the only one of them who do not seem to realize this?" Ma'ketra responds.

"This one has lived among her and her father long enough to know she would only see that as all the more reason to try and stop the danger. She does not realize that not all problems can be solved. Jahirr only hopes that things will have changed since this one was last there."

"You've been to the College of Whispers before?" Smallpaws asked.

"Yes, with Jo'azha, long ago. This one would have preferred to never return. Perhaps we will be unfortunate enough for you to find out why, little one."

* * *

 **So they're off to see the wizards, the wonderful wizards of whispers, in their college therein withers on the hills between the willows.**

 **The next few chapters will see a new sub-story unfolding, much like the one in Corinthe, except this one will revolve heavily around Smallpaws and his backstory. Almost the entirety of the College of Whispers story will be told from his perspective, and there is a big reason for that... ;)**

 **I look forward to telling this sub-story, it's been one I've had in mind for a long time, and mysterious/spooky stories with mages in their college/school are always fun. :D**

 **And of course we'll see if the Pride finds out the information about the Void Nights that they're looking for, or if not, anything useful to them in that regard.**

 **As always, reviews are much appreciated and welcomed - how'd you like the Living Under Void Nights Newspaper?**

 **See you next time with the first part of 'Whisker to Whisper'!**


	17. Chapter 14: Whisker to Whisper (P1)

**Temporarily removed this chapter for editing and because progress might be a bit slow for awhile and I feel the previous chapter is a better break-off point for the time being, if anyone is catching up on this in the meantime between now and when things get back to a normal pace. If you still want to read the chapter regardless, just PM me and I'll figure something out. I've no ETA on when that'll be unfortunately but rest assured it will be back up. Check my DA profile for some more Khajiit culture oriented short stories in the mean time, and for more information on the plans I have for this story! - AedricDaedra**


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